Chapter 1201 Spiritual Energy
Arthur walked through the troubled streets of Yalenia, listening to the city shake as the tower still crumbled. The earthquakes rushed through the city, straining its infrastructure, before traveling through Arthur's core. This was his own doing. A love story fulfilled, even for just a moment– Cyrian met Elara once again. Arthur had no idea why he did it, but for some reason, he felt alive because of it. His impact on the world, the tower of yearning itself, brought a defiance to everything he fought against. "You there, stop!" shouted a patrolling knight as he caught a glimpse of Arthur, but the next second, there was nothing.
[Light Bending] The rune floated, lacking a form, in his hand as it shrouded Arthur in a cloak of light bending that prevented others from seeing him. As long as light did not bounce off his body, then the human eye cannot see him. Giant Garden was not unknown to him. In fact, it was ironic that Oriole would go there, since Adam Leno, the mana monster supplying the Runic Dome with mana, was the man responsible for the mana catastrophe that befell that place. The valley that has appeared out of the sheer destruction fostered life in an amplified manner, making everything gigantic. If the seer was truthful, then Arthur could not delay this any longer. "The Tower of Yearning's fall will allow me to use this amount of mana without being noticed. Even if the Yalen King noticed me... I lack any other alternative." A ripple spread across space as Arthur compressed it to create a portal that would lead him straight to Giant Garden. Like a piece of fabric, space folded into itself to connect two dots that should not have anything to do with each other. Arthur passed through the portal, and felt the nauseous feeling of traveling hundreds of kilometers in an instant. The dark alleyway turned into an infinite sky with greenery that could reach it. Arthur felt his body fall, cutting through the air of Giant Garden. "An aerial view is best when looking for someone," muttered Arthur with a smile as the wind screamed in his ears and messed up his hair. His golden eyes darted across Giant Garden, looking for any anomaly.
Howl! An ear-piercing, low-pitched, howl rang in his ears and entire body, as if the sound waves wanted to rip him apart. Arthur was confused for a moment before he sensed the presence above, a shifting shadow in the clouds. At first, he thought it was a cloud. But the next moment, those very same clouds shifted and rushed toward him. Arthur did not need any rune, just a wave of his hand sent gales of wind that scattered the clouds. "What is this creature?" muttered Arthur with confusion as he turned around, letting his back face the approaching ground. He thought that a monster would reveal itself, but was surprised to see a pair of beautiful wings, spanning the entire sky above him. A colossal crane split the sky in half, with majestic white wings. The wings span the entire sky, almost connecting one mountain to the other like a celestial bridge. "This might be the biggest creature I have ever met," muttered Arthur with awestruck eyes. The crane's head rotated as it flew above him, its blue sapphire eyes looking at Arthur like he's an ant. Arthur prepared for a heavenly battle, but after the assailant clouds dissolved by his hand, the crane simply flapped its wings and disappeared.
Clouds shifted as the giant creature sent hurricanes toward the ground, its wings brushing against a small hill and obliterating it. Lucky for the landscape, it soared high enough to avoid turning it into a wasteland. "How could a creature of that magnitude exit in our world without anyone knowing?" muttered Arthur as the wind howled past his ears, the ground receiving him with trees, grass, and bone-crushing sturdiness. Arthur groaned because he has wasted his chance to comb the area from his aerial advantage, and another teleportation would simply be a waste. Arthur kicked toward the ground, creating a gale of wind that cushioned his fall. Although the trees were bent, he made sure not to damage it further. "Oriole is in this place?" muttered Arthur with concern. He has been here just a few moments and already met a threat to his life. Although he would be able to defeat that giant crane, its ability to magical clouds would be difficult to handle.
Dust fell as Arthur patted his clothes. At the same time, he closed his eyes and felt the existence of everything inside this Giant Garden. A moment of extrospection revealed another unusual truth about this place. "Mana is too chaotic in this place. It is no wonder that I couldn't feel Oriole's existence before," said Arthur with a frown. "If this is the case, how did Sier know where Oriole is?"
The alchemist should have chosen this place to avoid being found by the Yalen Royal Family. It was smart, but if the seer could find him, that means the masked woman leading the rebellion isn't wrong. Oriole was in danger. "If I cannot find Oriole because of the mana, then I just need to redirect it." A rune appeared on his palm, before his finger grabbed it. Arthur crouched on the ground, choosing an unassuming plant. He infused the rune into it. [Mana-Affinity] The plant absorbed the rune, and a torrent of mana rushed toward the herb. The scattered mana that made it hard to sense anything before found an inlet to rush into. Like a dam has opened, the flow was unstoppable. "This will take a while," observed Arthur as the mana fluttered his robes. "But I wonder what the repercussions of feeding this herb will be..." Arthur looked at the rune, and a ping of pain prickled his heart. This rune reminded him of his brother, Oren. Arthur wondered where he was at the moment… and whether he was safe. A few minutes later, a bestial scream echoed through the forest. Arthur turned around to find a… tree? A humanoid creature that looked like a tree carried a long sword, waving it as it rushed toward Arthur. "Did the herb attract it?" The swordsman's branch, acting as an arm that held the sword, elongated toward Arthur. The tree sought to pierce through his heart, but Arthur sidestepped and grabbed the branch. Then, with a tug, Arthur tore the branch with ease. Another scream, and another lunge forward. The tree seemed obsessed with obtaining the herb that acted as a mana reservoir, but Arthur couldn't let it obtain it. Instead of using his hand again, Arthur glared at the swordsman. Boom!
The ground shook as the spiritual energy exploded from his body, destroying the spiritual energy moving the tree. The overbearing spirit that Arthur exhibited destroyed the swordsman without even moving a finger. Arthur was surprised himself, as he blinked. He just meant to terrify the swordsman into running away, but his spiritual energy was so overbearing that it killed the beast with just an intention. "Did my spiritual energy get stronger again?" muttered Arthur with confusion as he observed the leaking strands from his body. "I think it happened after I defeated Artemis."
The battles ahead did not just involve empyreans, but actual celestial creatures. Arthur would not rest until he defeats everyone that sullied this world with their greed.
"If the satellites that monitor the world detect mana, they should be oblivious to spiritual energy, right?" As he entertained the idea, Arthur began to find it feasible. He has avoided using his mana lest he gets detected. But spiritual energy was an entirely different entity.
"It is either I find Oriole, or the entire world learns of my existence," muttered Arthur with a grin. "A risk worth taking."
Boom! Spiritual energy exploded from his body; far stronger than any mana he has used. It shook space, time, and the very essence of the world. This was the first time that Arthur allowed his spiritual energy to roam free, rampant and destructive. It was a freeing sensation, like finally immersing oneself in water after a long sweaty day. Spiritual energy was an extension of his body, and whatever they touched entered his mind map. This was a different method to detect things, different from existence and mana detection. Even as his energy reached the furthest corners of the valley, it showed no signs of diminishing. The dam was still open, and Arthur could feel that this was far from his limit. However, what he found forced him to stop. "...why is she here?"
Arthur raised his eyes upward, sensing the cabinet atop a distant tree. Inside the cabinet was a faint presence of a human. It was a woman he knew, but did not know. Her existence in this place was enough to raise his suspicions. Arthur kicked the ground and jumped, soaring toward the sky. His aim was the cabinet that contained Oriole's presence, but someone different inside.
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