novelraw Chapter 250 - 249 - Special Realm
Chapter 250 - 249 - Special Realm
The drama of Lind Frey's test spread to the camps at large and while many approved, the more keen noted that his Forging had advanced. The lack of any weapon in his stories made them wonder how far he had come and if he was hiding what kind of weapon he would wield.
Normally, a refined weapon would merely enhance a cultivator whether it be technique, Art, or innate talent of some kind, but a Forged weapon widened the possibilities as the peak grade 2 staves that had been made during the Cimmerian contest had proven their worth greatly.
Those that had been lucky enough to wield them had gone from barely passable use of their 6 elements to full blown powerhouses. Many suspected Lind had made it so those staves would have such a dramatic effect, but the utilization was always up to the wielder.
Thus many were distraught when Lind vanished for over 7 years. His return rekindled hope but the man had blown many away when he made an impromptu lesson in the Lotus Academy to find new Forgers and set them on the path.
Many powers that could never gather for the tournament in the Saint Kingdom now had hope for the future that that might change.
As the month finally wound down, a loud gong was heard one morning as all broke down their camps and moved to a large open field. There were no forests in sight but Lind could just make out the faint shadow of a mountain far to the east.
He wondered exactly where Triona was exactly but it was a strictly guarded secret. Further, Lind had yet to see any facility on par with being capable of holding over 1000 contestants and an audience, let alone access to Inheritances.
He followed Elder Quin and the other 9 slot holders while his wives took Ethry for the moment. He did not want to get disqualified by accident after all! After the massive sea of cultivators cleared away from the structure that held the teleportation array, he felt a strange sensation in his dantian.
It was almost as if the Qi in the air was no longer compatible with him and his dantian wanted nothing to do with it. The feeling was not unique to Lind as he saw many faces frown and look confused. All the ones heavily affected were World Realms. The Sky Realms did not seem to flinch but his Eyes showed a similar disruption to the Qi around them.
Lind was about to ask what was going on when the air above them seemed to wrinkle like a blanket. Shock flooded his body as he suddenly pieced together what was about to happen.
The sky seemed to crack like glass before a giant maw opened in the blue sky. Inside the maw was a different space. A massive set of circular structures seemed to rise right in front of them until coliseums emerged.
Some were pure white in color while others covered the spectrum. Lind did a quick count and realized there were 10 structures in total. It meant that the 1000 slots would be divided into those buildings or was there some sort of pattern to follow?
His curiosity was piqued but Elder Quin's next words floored him.
"Damn it, not the group battle challenges." The Divine Sword Sect knew the importance of teams but their preferred method of fighting was to rely on their individual strength. It meant that anything above 3 people usually had issues in their sect.
"Elder?" One of the disciples asked for clarity but Quin waved them off and then used her Qi to infuse a strange jade stone. It was not an artifact but Lind was stunned when a spatial flow covered them all.
One moment, they were looking at the rip in the sky, the next moment they were in front of the violet coliseum. The pressure of the building left Lind with no doubt it was Heaven Realm or above material in front of him.
He was unsure how the sudden construction worked but he dared not use his Eyes on it. He was certain to strain his mind if he did so. Flashes caught his eye as more senior cultivators showed up with their slot holders.
Some had 10 like them, but a few had 5 or less.
The flashes continued until 100 slot holders were present. Elder Quin let out a breath as they were the only great power to arrive at that coliseum. Lind was immensely curious how it all worked but it was not the time or place to ask.
"Listen up, we will be heading inside. Once we reach a certain point, I will have to leave you. Follow the marks you see there." She pointed and Lind saw a sigil of some kind but the moment he saw it his blood drained from his face.
He recognized that sigil.
Younger Twin and Delenn had let him see a few things but without context, it made little sense to him. It was mostly just too profound to talk about their level. So when he asked about weaving, one of its uses was to make sigils.
They functioned as gatekeepers to keys, but they were profound. The sigil on the coliseum was from a power that was long dead according to Delenn but their legacy was everywhere.
It was the sigil of the Immortal Blazes Sect. They were a power of alchemy, elixir, and so forth without rival for billions of years. A war broke out around them but no power laid a finger on their lands.
That was, until, a disciple tried to help mortals survive in a village and was killed. The sect master was enraged as the village was nothing. It was just one of many mortal villages that existed across the Celestial Fields but the warring factions wiped it out anyway as it was collateral damage.
The Immortal Blazes Sect began to wage war and while they did not have the powerhouses of other sects or kingdoms, they had a massive supply of support items like no other sect. The damage they caused led to their eventual destruction.
The once warring factions united to crush their common enemy and pillage the sect for all its treasures. The once great legacy of the Celestial Fields was wiped out due to their own anger and underestimating their enemies.
The sigil meant this special space was made by a combination of artifact, skills, and God knew what else but Lind was floored that Delenn always spoke of the Blazes in the past tense before she was even born. It meant that millions of years had passed but this special space still endured.
They moved deeper into the arched halls and the sparkling violet stone became draped in silks and arcane arrays. The power around them was oppressive but awe inspiring. No one dared speak in what felt like a sacred place.
The path suddenly branched and Lind felt it. There was a restriction ahead and the sigil above one path was what Elder Quin told them to follow. The seniors could no longer escort their charges but all watched as the youth passed through the passageway.
Lind felt a tingle on his skin and thanked his foresight to give Ethry to Annabelle before coming here. He had no doubt it would have caused issues.
Almost all were through when an issue finally occurred. A young man went to walk through the passage entrance when the sigil flared and he was flung back. Lind turned and saw an artifact shatter. It was a necklace and immediately a Gold Tier aura flared from the young man.
The other cultivators laughed or jeered but the seniors deeply frowned. Before anyone could act, a flash of light nearly blinded them and the young man and his senior vanished from the structure.
Lind had felt nothing. It floored him that he felt nothing. Either they were whisked away by a method he had no concept of or they were killed instantly. A few others seemed to have the thought but the remaining few slot holders now paused.
Lind shrugged and proceeded down the passage. They were hiding their strength or they were not. Either way, a contender was already defeated.
The other 9 Divine Sword Sect disciples followed his lead. Since the evaluation, they were much more respectful of Lind but he never abused it. He in fact answered their questions openly, but it was up to them how much they comprehended. He did not guide them.
Even so, several of them felt bottlenecks loosen just by engaging with him and other disciples followed after them. Those that were not in the slots, Lind happily guided and engaged far more than his compatriots, but they understood.
His lack of making anyone swear an oath to not share what he taught spoke volumes of his trust. Elder Quin even complimented him. She did it quite publicly too which irritated many that were once close to Tolan.
Tolan had left the camp after that incident and no one was quite sure where he had gone.
For now, Lind continued deeper and deeper into the structure and was fighting the urge to examine it with his Eyes and Touch. He had no hope of even scratching the surface but he would already be quite happy for some insights if he could grasp them.
Still, they finally reached a large room. It had a massive circular table with a dark cloth on top of it. There were no chairs but there was a shimmering image of the inside of the coliseum. It was half forest and half rocky terrain.
Lind noticed immediately that there were no signs of division within the large room. The table could easily accommodate 100 people without issue or any need to press together. The rest of the room was rather plain but he noted a few kitchen and rest areas.
What exactly was this tournament leading them to? He had thought it would be direct fights but it seemed it was to be something different.
They were still trickling in but once the last person came through, Lind noted 2 more had been taken off the roster. They were now down to 97. Whether that was good or bad, remained to be seen.
"Please encircle the meeting table. The scenario of the first round will be explained once all are present." A voice boomed out of the air and they quickly moved forward but found something odd. They could not randomly gather around the table.
There was an odd pressure that pushed back until they realized they were assigned spots. Lind quickly found his and noticed he was nowhere near his fellow slot holders. It took only a few moments but once all 97 were around the table, the image changed.
Lind saw the area become 3 dimensional as it floated down and covered the table.
"The first round of the tournament shall be crowd control. The round will continue until 100 contestants remain. Each base has different environments and Qi flow. It is up to the 100 in each base to determine how to mold their environment to their advantage in the next half day. After that time, a random enemy base will be chosen and battle will commence." The voice was deep and made Lind's bones vibrate but the instructions were clear enough.
The first round they would control their coliseum inner area which would then connect to another coliseum in half a day. Each side would fight and use the environment to attack, control, or entrap their foes.
"Final note: A leader will be assigned. If they die, are incapacitated, or conceded, the entire base will forfeit the round." Lind frowned at that rule. It hinged on if the leader would be easy to spot or if they could be hidden. If the former, then that would dictate a lot of the ideas people would come up with, but if the latter, there was infinite flexibility.
A violet glow spread across the table and all of them before it faded from all but 1.
Lind wanted to curse. He wanted to scream at the voice. The violet glow to his skin slowly faded at last but it left behind a large mark on his cheek in the same shape as the sigil that led them to the room.
"Begin!" A giant dial appeared with the sun and moon. The marker was currently half way between sunrise and noon. They would start in the afternoon. All 96 pairs of eyes were staring at him and Lind felt pressure like never before. Would they hide him away, or would they allow him to fight?
He took a breath and began to think over what the map showed. He had to decide for himself and he had to prove he was worthy. The other 9 disciples from Divine Sword Sect had an inkling of what he could do, but that was all. He had never shown a single trump card nor his weapon.
Lind then smiled suddenly. It was not a smile of kindness or confidence. It was the smile of an evil genius realizing they could finally let loose all the ideas they ever conceived and it made all in the room shiver but feel more confident. They began to examine their situation and whispered plans began to form.