The square fell into an oppressive silence. A Heaven-Defier had been among them all along. The expressions of the members of the Black Phoenix race turned grim, especially Veria, who seemed to lose all ground with that statement.
She clenched her fists, causing blood to drip from them. A Heaven-Defier was supposed to be someone bloodthirsty... well, the whale definitely was, and everyone witnessed it. However, he had reasons not to show mercy. Veria had heard directly from her daughter the whole story involving this figure and his involvement with the dark elves.
’He cared for the weak without any reason... saved my daughter who was about to be captured... and even gifted me...’ Veria couldn’t reconcile the stories of a Heaven-Defier with the whale.
"It was your Black Phoenix race that brought this Heaven-Defier here! Are you conspiring against all life forms in the underworld?!" suddenly shouted the leader of the Dark Scale Falcon race.
At that moment, the expression of everyone from the Black Phoenix race changed completely. "You’re talking nonsense!" Veria shouted furiously. It was sinister to see these beasts trying to create conflicts between them and everyone around.
"This matter has nothing to do with the Black Phoenix race. They were simply deceived by the Heaven-Defier and should not be blamed. Even we were deceived. If anyone should be blamed, blame the Golden Asuras for their negligence." Unexpectedly, the Elder Golden Asura actually defended them.
All powers within that planet were under the control of the Golden Asuras. When it came to the movements of these demon beasts, the Asuras knew them like the back of their hand. There was no way they could have intentionally attracted the Heaven-Defier.
"The Supreme Elder is wise. This matter really has nothing to do with my Black Phoenix race. My daughter Lirelia is still young and was enchanted by this wicked figure. Please, do not blame her," said Veria on behalf of her entire race.
She said that, but internally, her mind was a mess. There was no possibility of her siding with the whale, or her clan would crumble. But her chest tightened in pain for having said that.
"Don’t worry. The formation has been activated and he’s like a turtle trapped in a jar. Although we can’t do anything with him inside the Elemental Condensation World, once a month is complete, he won’t be able to escape," said a Golden Asura lightly.
Back in the world. It was all over, and the group gathered around the whale.
"We should hurry!" Lirelia spoke anxiously, the whale just turned to the nearby members of the Black Phoenix clan. Then, Lirelia turned to them. "The clan must have seen your contributions from outside. Now, go seize your opportunities."
Everyone nodded and bowed, then quickly set off. With the two cerberi, there were five members now. Soon, they turned to a specific region and all ran.
It would take at least 15 days for them to get there normally. The place was vast, and they could only run. Alm and Bruno could perfectly reach it in a day, but it wasn’t necessary. It was obvious that the other clans had a deal with the Golden Asuras; none of their main members appeared near them at the entrance of the world.
Days passed. Lightning appeared in all directions, and thunder rumbled. The demon beasts were undergoing tribulations everywhere.
"They are weaker people who dare not enter the central region for fear that celestial tribulations may crush them. So they choose to undergo tribulations in the outer regions," Lirelia said to Yanson beside her. "They need to advance as quickly as possible. That way, they’ll have time to seek resources in this sacred world. Their fate is in the hands of luck to get good things here."
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Yanson nodded in understanding. As they approached the core, the clouds of tribulations grew stronger. Therefore, the closer to the core, the greater the power of the tribulation. Despite the Yin and Yang rays of this place greatly reducing the chance of death, with this special opening, the level of tribulations multiplied tremendously. The benefits were immensely greater, but death was much clearer to everyone. Without great power, undergoing tribulations here was courting death. So it was better to just enjoy a bit of the rays and seek resources.
They were extremely fast. Despite Shuki and Muphs stopping to help them, they only lost a few minutes, thanks to the whale. Soon, Lirelia comforted them. According to the Black Phoenix clan records, after fifteen days, half of the spots would be filled. Then, it would take another three days for all the spots to be taken. At their current pace, they would arrive in time for all five of them to easily enter.
So, the fifteen days passed in apprehension until they reached the front of an imposing sphere, a giant barrier. Inside it, the five saw the familiar figures of the Infernal Mammoth clan, Abyssal Bakunawa, and all the others who had always been with them, including Dexo.
Twenty of them were seated inside the barrier, with divine light flowing around their bodies as they seemed to be receiving some kind of blessing during meditation. The power of the stellar formation circulated around them. Alm and Bruno clearly felt the energy of the divine soul penetrating them.
BOOM!
A burst of extreme black fire erupted from Lirelia and struck the barrier. There was a powerful explosion, but the barrier didn’t budge at all. Instead, Lirelia was sent flying backward. She had used all her concentrated power, but it was like an ant trying to shake a tree when it hit this barrier.
"Bastards!" The Black Phoenix roared in fury. Meanwhile, those inside the barrier smiled as if they had already won.
"Idiot, didn’t you know? This barrier can only hold a maximum of twenty people. When it’s full, the barrier will automatically block others. No one can force their way in, Hahaha," Dexo laughed arrogantly.
After two seconds, he looked at the whale and continued. "Too bad. We wanted to wait for you, but the barrier was activated automatically. After we absorb everything and go through the tribulation, we can settle our differences properly."
It seemed like he was really feeling regret, but he was also showing off and gleefully taunting. The reason? He saw the gigantic three-headed creature further back, completely in tears. Beside it, another cerberus was with empty eyes in complete despair. For Dexo and the others, that was even more satisfying.
Alm and Bruno observed the barrier, deep in thought when a strange voice resonated in their minds.
’You... enter?’
’It’s about time you did something, isn’t it?’ Alm replied curtly in his mind. The voice came directly from that rune he received from the "elder" of the dark elves in the forest. It was precisely Gaia communicating.
’I... sorry... help me...’
The voice was strange and seemed to have extreme difficulty communicating. It was probably being heavily suppressed by the formation. Moreover, this planet’s primordial core was initially something simple and without any intelligence. It only awakened thanks to the stellar formation and was learning to speak.
’I don’t help for free. If you give me enough benefits, anything is possible,’ said Alm emotionlessly.
’I understand... all friends?’
’Yes, we can talk calmly later. I know you can expel them, having minimal control over the central place and mental power. As a show of goodwill, expel them.’
There was no response, but they felt the rune tremble affirmatively. After the voice disappeared, they noticed Lirelia was pointing and cursing at Dexo, while the others inside mocked arrogantly in response, angering her until she stomped her feet like a child wanting to attack the barrier again. Yanson somehow held her back with his small body.
"What will we do... we can’t get in..." Shuki murmured next to Muphs, already in his human form amidst tears of despair and anxiety.
"Don’t worry. I’ll expel them soon," said the whale calmly.
"Do you think we’re leaving? Keep dreaming, get ready for when I come out!" Dexo roared gleefully.
At that moment, Shuki rushed in front of the whale quickly. "Lord! The fate of my race is at stake. If you can help us, we will reward you with everything we have."
The whale merely glanced at her lightly, and then a message echoed in her mind. ’I have a favor to ask. We’ll negotiate that later.’
At that exact moment, everyone inside the barrier widened their eyes. They were shocked to find out that the mysterious energy flowing into their bodies was starting to flow back.
"What’s happening?!" One of them exclaimed in bewilderment.
It wasn’t just them who were shocked. The other cultivators in the square also noticed the same phenomenon. The soul power that had settled in their bodies was forcibly being withdrawn back.
Shuki was pleasantly surprised, and her heart raced frantically. She didn’t know what was happening, but seeing their expressions, she realized that something unexpected had occurred.
Even the Golden Asuras in the outer world were stunned. They also didn’t understand why such a strange phenomenon would occur.
Suddenly, the barrier shook. Dexo and the others screamed as they were thrown out of it. Everyone outside was stunned. Now the barrier was empty, and the whale chuckled as it pulled everyone inside it.
The twenty who were inside found themselves outside and roared furiously. They didn’t even know what had happened and attacked the barrier.
BOOM!
As a result, they were all categorically rejected and flew across the horizon, spitting out black blood.
"Hahaha, you idiots, you know nothing! I’m related to the Golden Asuras. This is their special treatment for me. Did you think they’d leave the good stuff for you?" Bruno spoke loudly to everyone, laughing arrogantly from inside the barrier. Only the five of them could now benefit from it.