The Ninth Legion returned to their camp in silence. Once back, everyone practically sighed in relief all at the same time.
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"You don’t have time to relax," Ruri quickly told them, waving her hand. "Use all the resources and equip yourselves as much as possible. Think the worst is over? The pain and suffering are just getting started."
Alm and Bruno sent a message to Ruri, and she added, "One more thing: you’re forbidden from absorbing that so-called ’sacred power.’ Focus on other areas from now on."
Everyone looked confused after she said that, but her words were never ignored. They took a deep breath and quickly got to work. Meanwhile, Carod was taken by the two golems to a building where they shared their plans.
"That old man with one foot in the grave said it, didn’t he? The entire legion will be tested in two weeks when our test ends. Let’s make the most of this time—the resources we’ve gained aren’t for showing off," Bruno said casually. "But first, tell me everything you know about that tree and how you collect the fruits."
Carod started explaining. Basically, the massive tree in the center of the area produces exactly twelve celestial fruits annually. Each month of the year, one fruit ripens enough to fall naturally.
When that day comes, it triggers a battle with the beasts and a race against the other legions. Usually, the top three legions end up with the fruit. But it’s not always predictable, since no one knows exactly which fruit will fall or where it’ll land on the enormous tree.
Apparently, all the fruits grow identically until a certain point. When the month is complete, the tree randomly transfers a massive amount of energy to one fruit.
In the end, each legion positions themselves near the tree, leaving the outcome to luck. But once a fruit falls, the legion must secure it for themselves.
"Just over a year ago, my legion got lucky when a fruit fell nearby. But when the beasts attacked us, we got pinned down. The Third and First Legions were close, and they joined the fight," Carod recounted something that only recently made sense to him.
"In the end, all three legions were battling, but the First Legion’s leader, who’s usually pretty friendly, made me an offer. My legion, which was closest to the fruit, stepped aside to let him and his legion take it. So, the First ended up with the fruit… but thinking about it now, maybe Pouzek took that to heart."
Ruri spoke coldly, "An arrogant idiot, always insatiable. People like him can’t handle defeat, especially with a close relative as a High Elder. Don’t blame yourself. If it hadn’t been that incident, he’d have found another excuse to cause trouble. Idiots like him can’t get along with anyone—they’re always looking for conflict, trying to tear others down. Crushing people makes them feel big and hides how mediocre they really are."
Carod nodded in understanding. He continued, saying that while the top three legions usually claimed the fruits, there were two or three times a year when lower-ranked legions managed to grab one.
These fruits, besides being worth an immense amount of points—comparable to all the bodies they had just collected—also provided something priceless. Alm and Bruno’s eyes lit up. It was the heroic core they had encountered before.
"Yes, the mutants that arrive on the continents every century bring this with them. They usually trade them for resources in the empire or use them themselves once they’ve learned the technique," Carod confirmed.
With the right technique, cultivators could absorb the heroic core. This allowed them to draw sacred power from the statues ten times faster. It was time-limited, but the gains were huge for anyone there.
Alm said with satisfaction, "That core was really effective in activating our celestial soul. It’s great to know how to get more."
Ruri seemed to read his thoughts, her eyes sparkling as she asked, "What if we got all 12? Has that ever happened before?"
"Hm?" Carod’s eyes widened, realizing her intent. But he had a feeling that if it were them, it could actually happen.
"All twelve, no… but it’s not considered impossible. In the legions’ history, there were cases where extraordinary figures brought back two or three fruits. They never revealed how they did it, but it’s common knowledge that these individuals always tried and succeeded multiple times. It’s also said that getting all twelve is possible, though it involves overcoming certain barriers."
The other fruits didn’t have as much energy as the fully nurtured one, but they were still incredibly valuable. In some ways, they were even more valuable, as alchemists and scholars could study the immature fruit to compare it with the fully ripe one, learning how to use the latter more effectively.
"Perfect. If it’s not that unusual, then we’re going to take all of them," Ruri said excitedly, looking at Alm, who nodded.
After that, Bruno asked Carod to pay any Elder or legion member who could provide information about the various beast races in the area that engaged in heinous acts. According to Carod, there were those that enslaved others and those that captured beings alive to refine them into something sinister.
Some even included divine female beast races that captured men to use them for reproduction. These men never returned and were kept as breeding tools until they died. Though technically slaves, they weren’t used as sacrifices. In these cases, if they weren’t tortured or subjected to similar cruelty, Ruri decided to assess the situation. But for the others, she would show no mercy and exterminate them.
She thought of Rivine and understood how complicated it was to belong to a single-gender race. These beasts were trapped here—how else could they keep their race alive?
Depending on the species, like the Harpies, they could only produce offspring of their own kind if their partner came from a weak bloodline. Humans or humanoid races were perfect for this. Maelik didn’t have human blood, but his Mara and bestial bloodline could easily be dominated by Rivine.
Here, however, all the divine and demonic beasts were ancient and had powerful bloodlines. A single-gender race couldn’t reproduce with them. So, stealing men destined to die in battle and taking them to sustain their race wasn’t unforgivable—so long as they weren’t mistreated too badly.
In three days, all the legion’s warriors were ready. Meanwhile, Carod returned with the locations of various beast races, along with detailed reports of their documented actions.
From that day on, hell began for those poor cultivators. Two-thirds of them were taken out of the camp while the rest stayed back to defend it.
They launched direct attacks on the beasts’ bases. There were no elaborate plans or tactics—it was straightforward. Ruri sealed off the area to prevent any escape, and the legion’s warriors engaged in a brutal and desperate battle, constantly teetering on the edge of death.
Carod was always with them in battle, while Ruri organized and led them. She taught him what he needed to know until Carod grasped the most basic tactics and efficient commands. Only after he learned the basics would he be able to develop his own way of leading.
After nearly a week of intensive fighting, no one died, though everyone battled and got injured to the point of being on death’s doorstep several times. Finally, Carod was put in charge of commanding them on his own. Ruri prepared spatial formations for them to seal the battlefield.
"You have until the end of our test to finish everything," Bruno said, and Carod gulped nervously. They would practically have to fight day and night to get it done.
In the first week, they targeted the female beasts first. There were two races, and one of them was wiped out because they sedated men, turned them into zombies, and, when one of them became fertile, injected them with toxins to achieve the result.
The other race was called the Lunar Rabbits, a group of Divine Beast women. When Ruri arrived, they immediately agreed to release the men if their race could be removed from the area.
However, the men in the village worked there practically free, and strangely, none of them seemed willing to leave. According to reports, they were defeated in battle and captured as trophies; over time, the women seduced them until they wanted to stay.
Carod also mentioned that in the past, there had been a similar male-only beast race that captured women. But they had been wiped out over time. Other female-only races had also vanished. In this place, not all races managed to survive.
With that handled, the couple finally had some free time to reflect and prepare. Ruri needed to meditate on the space-time knowledge she had obtained, while Alm and Bruno spent their time absorbing all the primordial power crystal they had stolen from the mutant demons at the beginning of the mission.
Another week passed, and the Ninth Legion finally began to feel like fighting wasn’t as difficult anymore. Carod was able to command them more efficiently, and after every battle—which lasted almost a full day—they returned with their spoils and converted them into resources. They grew stronger in every way.
With just a few days left before the test ended, they were close to dealing with all the targeted beasts. But they had to halt their progress, as it was the date for one of the fruits to fall.
At that moment, all the legions stopped what they were doing—well, not all. The Third Legion had ceased to exist after the death of its leader. Its members were reassigned to other legions, but Carod received the news and couldn’t be bothered to recruit any of them.
On that day, all eight remaining legions moved toward the regions surrounding the Great Immortal Tree.