Alm and Bruno were at the faction base, monitoring the mission through Ruri’s eyes. The whale smiled slightly; after so many inexplicable events involving these disciples, it was evident that central elders would be sent to supervise the mission. Observing the attire of the three, they identified them as members of the Obsidian, Noctryn, and Nightflare clans—the three largest.
Thalor looked up and squinted slightly, as if sensing something. "Uncle Weall, what do you..."
Soon, a slightly round man from the Obsidian clan spoke, addressing Thalor: "We will be in charge of the mission. We will ensure that nothing goes wrong at the sect’s request."
Thalor sighed tensely. At that moment, the whale noticed something in his expression. ’He also called that woman we killed, Vubia, aunt, right? For him to react so strangely now... is he her husband?’ Bruno commented mentally.
Alm responded, ’Doesn’t matter. If they try to use elders to seal the disciples’ cultivation, we’ll interfere and cause a big commotion. But I don’t think they would repeat that strategy; after all, we injured that elder who tried it; they know we can neutralize it.’
’They can’t act so openly. If they put any beast within the Heaven Stage Realm, any of the three can kill it. The only solution is to act against the rules by directly summoning superior things. But with us outside seeing everything, they will only destroy themselves. It will be even better; we can even record the images,’ Bruno said lightly.
As they reflected, all six factions were transported to the world of death. It was another realm, the third they encountered. However, it looked identical to the previous ones at first glance. The only difference between the three became clear as the beasts appeared: they all seemed to be bestial birds. The world inside the giant rune was inhabited by beasts of different types.
The mission unfolded similarly to the previous one. Everyone had armbands marking their scores, and a sea of bird-shaped beasts of all species attacked violently. But this time, within minutes, the ferocity of the beasts was interrupted. Then, their eyes changed... to fear.
The Primal Beast Legion was like a meat grinder, a divine blade that made anything nearby explode defenselessly. They didn’t even unite into a single unit. They just split into groups of six disciples and advanced in all directions; then, a true massacre began to unfold.
Within minutes, more than 10% of the beasts were dissipated by them, and now they had reached the center of the place. In the next few minutes, this number would multiply several times. The mission? It seemed like a light workout for them.
The three elders watching everything had grim expressions. Then, exchanging messages among themselves, Weall from the Obsidian clan made a subtle move. Right in the center of a distant mountain, the giant rune pulsed as beasts emerged directly from the seal.
The disciples’ mission was only to fight against the weakest beasts expelled from the seal. But these were summoned from within, and although their cultivation was similar to the expelled ones, their bloodlines and power were multiple times greater.
But...
Within minutes, the elders almost spit blood. The three leaders didn’t move, and as soon as the beasts appeared, without any exchange of words, groups of disciples joined together into a larger group. The massacre continued as if nothing had happened.
Two hours later, the elders had bloodshot eyes. Then, the world of death was almost entirely replenished with beasts... all coming from the sealed world, and they were at the limit of the Heaven Stage Realm.
This was the maximum limit that the elders could summon, or the trials against them would be permanently recorded. At this point, the three factions were already united. And nothing changed.
They were like wolves among sheep, just continuing to kill, now together. It would just take longer than expected... but in the midst of the slaughter, cries of desperation began to sound.
The faction of Lokar and Fyclea was on the verge of collapsing. One-third of their disciples had already died; every minute, they were being massacred more quickly. It was no longer a competition of who killed more; for them, it had become a survival mission.
On the other hand, Thalor’s faction, despite the pressure, his behemoth lineage created earth armors that weighed nothing, protecting everyone. He himself created earth fists and funneled the beasts, a method similar to the late Sunli. There were deaths, but they were safe.
At this moment, Ruri, Corin, and Loeus had already noticed the obvious that was happening. So, without any hesitation, they ordered their members to retreat.
Everyone moved and changed the formation to the ’Thousand Petal Lotus.’ Quickly, they approached Fyclea’s faction, and Ruri mentally called her. It didn’t take long for the fey to turn to the human with reluctant eyes, then ordered all of hers. In seconds, they entered inside the ’lotus.’
Thus, they were protected in the center of the formation. After the move, Loeus called Lokar, but he refused. "I’d rather die fighting than be a protected weakling. Everyone by my side is a warrior, and we’ll die for being weak."
With a sigh, Corin spoke. "We don’t want to protect anyone; we’re calling to fight together. We don’t give free handouts. This test is very abnormal; if we unite, we can survive until the end."
The orc looked at the young ’elf’ and sighed heavily. It was obvious that their faction had no problem in this place, but fighting alongside was acceptable. So, they joined.
Their formation changed; the three factions became the outer petals, the two new ones, the inner ones. Those in the front faced the first wave and let some pass, then the others fought calmly. It wasn’t necessary, but their pride had to be preserved. This was a good thing; they were watching those in the front fight and trying to replicate the process; slowly, they were learning and improving. When they left the mission, they would reflect on everything and evolve.
Then, the three central elders watched the hours pass with grim faces. They couldn’t do anything too drastic, and even if they lost their heads, Thalor was present; they couldn’t risk his life in any way.
So, after nearly twelve hours, everything ended. In the completely empty world of death, they looked at the runes showing the rankings that appeared above.
Without the slightest surprise, the three factions took the top three spots, with a difference of over 80% compared to the fourth place. This time, Corin’s Earthbound Horn took first place. Previously, Ruri had claimed the top spot, but now, due to her absence to create the formation, Corin was able to significantly improve her subordinates.
The women of Loeus’s Life Horn took this result seriously. They were more focused on support and defense and couldn’t compete in terms of the number of kills with those two factions. In fourth place was Thalor’s Obsidian faction, followed by Lokar and Fyclea’s faction.
As they observed the runes, the three central elders emerged without saying a word, simply nodding, indicating that everyone should leave the place.
As soon as everyone exited the world of death, the elders huffed, frustrated. However, they knew they would have other opportunities. But as they prepared to leave, a voice resonated in their ears.
"I won’t allow you to leave."
Surprised, the elders turned around and saw the speaker, Thalor, looking at them angrily.
He then took a yellowed emblem from his inventory and crushed it with his hands, causing it to explode. The elders immediately widened their eyes.
"I, Thalor Obsidian, on behalf of the Three Extremes Sect and the Obsidian clan, accuse the three of you of betraying the sect. And Weall Obsidian, a traitor to the clan."
He spoke, and immediately, thousands of spatial fluctuations appeared. Thousands of elders wearing yellowed armor instantly materialized, surrounding all directions. Then, they turned to the elders accused by Thalor.
"Wait! Thalor, I’m your family! How can you accuse me like this!" Weall spoke, bewildered.
"The Obsidian clan doesn’t accept people who prioritize their personal interests over the lives of others. By your actions, thousands of disciples died unjustly. All of them had a bright future in the sect. You dishonored my clan and caused irreparable damage to the sect," Thalor spoke dryly. "Exalted Elders, capture them. I vouch for it myself, and you can investigate; there will be clear evidence."
The three elders were stunned, without any exchange of words. Chains made of earth laws covered them, with no way of escape. They didn’t attempt to resist; there was no way out. They were then dragged to the central sect.
Thalor, in turn, turned to the factions around, sighed, and bowed, bending his round belly. "I apologize on behalf of my clan. He promised to supervise but tarnished our name. I will take all measures to punish him and others. Compensation will be delivered after the investigations."
Everyone fell silent. They didn’t expect such a decisive attitude. Thalor stood up, waved, and pulled out a piece of meat. Before chewing, he spoke: "I’ll bid farewell; I need to eat, or I’ll die." He put it in his mouth and left quickly, as if he had been without food for months, on the verge of starvation.
"Hmmm, master also seemed like he would die if he didn’t eat in the past... should I..." Ruri mumbled, lost in her thoughts.
Far away, Alm and Bruno just snorted, surprised. It was good to find decent people in the midst of cultivators, where family bonds were almost sacred. They protected each other no matter what happened, and now, through Thalor’s actions, they saw that within this clan there were other cultivators with principles similar to his.
’If Thalor hadn’t done this, they could easily cover everything. Well, it was unexpected, but our plan to be protected by them seems good now,’ Bruno commented.
***
Everyone returned to their factions. After three days, Lokar and Fyclea appeared at the entrance of their camp. The whale was summoned, and they moved lazily.
"Lord, we want an alliance. Please accept us; we won’t disappoint you," Fyclea spoke, bowing as soon as she met him.
The orc just roared, speaking about warriors in battle covered in searing heat and blood... but Alm and Bruno didn’t care to listen or remember. ’Clearly, they were sent by their clans. But forming an alliance with their clans doesn’t seem bad either. We can spread ourselves among the three and gain more from it,’ Alm said dryly.
So, he just waved to Ruri and left. It was only an alliance; she couldn’t reveal their training ground. But when their disciples rested for three days, they could visit the factions and help train other disciples. Like the three leaders before, disciples teaching others would improve themselves, benefiting everyone.
Soon, another month passed. At this point, the whale couldn’t find any elders willing to offer rainbow crystals again. However, the whale acquired so many spiritual crystals that they became almost countless, so they simply began to use them with everyone.
Ruri and Loeus reached the first level of the Heaven Stage Realm, just like all the disciples. Corin advanced one level as well, reaching the fifth level of the same realm. The whale, after using almost 70% of everything, leveled up; it was now at the fourth level of the same realm.
Then, to no one’s surprise, the same elder who conducted the internal test and the first mission appeared for the third time. He looked much more aged than usual, but nothing happened. In just three hours, Ruri’s faction took first place. Following that, Corin and Ruri exchanged competitive banter.
The fourth and fifth months as internal disciples passed lightly. The whale calculated the incalculable spiritual crystals it gained biweekly, and they concluded that they would level up, hopefully getting close to the other with it. So, it was better to save them temporarily for when they reached the central sect.
In that month, after a few days, Nimfle secretly handed a message to the whale; he just received it without saying anything. Then, that night, he went out with Ruri to a place in the inner sect.
She was confused about being suddenly taken, but she would never deny them anything. So, the whale used a badge in a strange region, and space opened up. Inside, a gigantic mountain that seemed to pierce the skies appeared.
They ascended together, floating to the top of the mountain slowly. At the summit, the whale sat down and called Ruri to his side. She sat and remained silently beside him. They gazed at the sky as if the whale were waiting for something; an hour passed. Then, an extraordinary calm enveloped the night, and the atmosphere became electrically charged.
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The stars sparkled intensely, and the full moon illuminated the distant horizon. Ruri noticed a crystal cloud delicately forming around the moon, as if the moon itself were shrouded in a magical veil.
"It’s time," the whale spoke softly.
It seemed like he whispered enchanting words, summoning the presence of the lunar goddess. It was as if the universe, on this distant planet, was preparing a celestial spectacle exclusively for that moment. Ruri felt a gentle breeze, a subtle wind song caressing her face.
The crystal cloud began to glow, emitting a soft and ethereal light. Luminous points, like small stars, danced around the moon, creating a celestial halo. The scene felt like a dream, with the moon wrapped in a mist of shining crystals, while the light points floated delicately.
"In a distant place where I come from, we called this Paraselene," the whale murmured softly to Ruri, who was stunned. "It means ’beside’ or ’next to,’ and ’Selene’ was the goddess of the moon in that place. Your clan and family have the name Moonlight, and now I’m by your side. I thought it would be an interesting connection. Beautiful, don’t you think? By the way, it’s past midnight; now you’re 17 years old."
Ruri immediately blushed like an apple. It was then that Alm and Bruno noticed the strange atmosphere they created with this. Soon, Bruno sighed and spoke.
"You’ve been acting a bit strange lately, what’s going on?"
She turned to them and looked deeply into their eyes. The whale sensed her intentions, and even his body seemed to lean forward to jump at them... but she noticed their strange looks and took a deep breath, staying in place.
After sighing, her eyes trembled, and looking up, she spoke painfully. "I thought taking the first step would change things... but master is now avoiding me as much as possible... I only made everything worse... I’m sorry."
The whale sighed; indeed, her actions had become quite problematic lately. After she advanced twice, they devised well-calculated measures to prevent it from happening again. But... they now felt a certain tightness about it.
"Things cannot be rushed like this..."
They were gently interrupted. "Yes, master is wise and has spoken several times that everything should flow naturally, not forced. I... am too impatient... and also forced the master into this."
They closed their eyes; they hesitated, but how were they forced? Then she smiled bitterly and spoke. She detailed her developed technique and its origins.
Bruno was petrified; he was the opening she exploited. Alm, on the other hand, sighed heavily and spoke mentally. ’Little devil... she managed to deceive us thanks to mental power. Well, it was a perfectly calculated move.’
Ruri saw the whale’s silence and lowered her head with trembling eyes; soon, a gentle hand passed through her head. "I’ll overlook it as something from an immature young one; don’t think too much about it, it doesn’t represent much. Well... because you regretted and admitted your mistake. It seems like you’ve matured. I’m proud."
She raised her gaze, and tears fell; soon, the whale gently wiped them away. Then Alm took over and spoke. "Watch the Paraselene; it will end soon."
Thus, Ruri nodded and clung to their arm, silently looking at the horizon. A few minutes passed, and then everything was gone, but it seemed to have deeply marked her in various ways.
The whale then spoke softly. "A relationship begins with trust and sincerity. You know very little about me, truly..."
Guided by the feeling that Alm and Bruno didn’t want to discuss, they felt they should be as honest as she had been. So, they talked about their lives on a planet called Earth and spoke about their second lives.
They shared about Almin, his ex-wife Isla. And then, they spoke as gently as they could about the end of everything. About his extreme hatred, about his mistakes... endless mistakes... Then, as the dawn light illuminated the horizon, the final revelation of the real enemy was told.
Ruri just listened but trembled severely, holding their hands. Then, the whale concluded after taking a deep breath.
"I’ve had many moments of reflection since I arrived in this universe. Life has been revealed to me from a different perspective, and you played a crucial role in dispelling the shadows from my eyes," surprisingly, it was Alm who spoke, being sincere.
"You’re facing something similar with the hatred for what they did to your people, the hatred for the divine family, and everything else. I’ve lived long enough to share a truth with you: we have no control over the actions of others, but we have control over how we absorb the consequences. To suffer from it and let oneself be consumed by hatred... that is a choice that only you can make."
"In the end, when I surrendered to revenge, the biggest loser was myself. There were other paths I could have chosen; maybe I would have discovered about the queen much earlier, arrived at this place sooner... Now, at the end of it all, I carry with me the weight of many sins forever."
"After I faced the abyss, I killed my own brother and my home planet. After that, everything became an abyss that made me sink without limits. So, don’t allow yourself to be corrupted. Don’t lose your essence. However, that doesn’t mean you should be passive, that you shouldn’t seek revenge. Fight against their actions, not against them."
The dawn light illuminated the two from the mountaintop. And definitely, that moment was etched in her forever.