Is That A Wisp?

by Srtyi

What if a wisp, with zero EQ about human culture and habits, gains the opportunity to cultivate and finally achieve human form? Now he can enter cities, experience technology, and fight his way to the top, right? In this universe where wisps are seen as nothing more than cultivation resources, a wisp stands up to challenge the wisps destiny! Not without causing a lot of misundersta

4. 66

Read Is that a Wisp? Chapter 66 The Last of the Big Four online for free - AllNovelFull

Krune calmed himself and checked it up again. That time, he didn't hear anything.

'Could it be I'm really imagining things?'

But there was one thing he could feel. There was really a link between the lightning power in his soul and the lightning power in the rainbow core. He tried to use this link to control the power of the tribulation lightning, but nothing happened. He would need to use his Spiritual Energy Meridians, if he wanted to use its power, as always. There was also another point, the power of the tribulation lightning in his core had increased again.

'I noticed it is keeping more and more lightning power. But does it have anything to do with the lightning in my soul?'

He decided to give it some time. First, he needs to finish healing himself. After that, he will try to temper his soul with tribulation lightning once more. Maybe at that time, he will find something.

Back at the Mercenary Guild headquarters, Bary Kasfiu was discussing the issue of Krune's rainbow core with Kassius Ruli.

"A rainbow core... To think that our planet would give birth to a rainbow core cultivator. Not only that! But he can also use some tribulation lightning power. This isn't anyone that a small planet like Makui should have. Could it be that the planet's next ten thousand years of fortune would have been used in a single breath?"

Kassius was a lot more realistic, though.

"Stop with that crap! The important thing now is to decide how we are going to deal with him. I'd already sent a copy of the 'Eye Seal Technique' for him to practice. With that, his rainbow eyes irises will be concealed. But sooner or later, people will start to notice his abnormal control over the elements."

Bary shook his head.

"I don't think this is a big issue. One thing is that they are noticing their element control; another thing is that they guess that it is because of a rainbow core. At most, the other powers would think that he is very talented. We are talking about a rainbow core here, let alone very few people know about it. Even if there were a lot who knew, no one would imagine that someone like him would appear on our planet. Even if someone suspects, we can just give some excuse."

Kassius pondered a bit and had to agree that was really the case.

"If that's the case, can't we have him participating in the Mercenary Selection and Martial Gathering?"

Bary nodded

"That's exactly what I was thinking. Even if he hasn't been at that level yet, there is still 8 months ahead for the Mercenary Selection and 10 months for the Martial Gathering. I think he will definitely be at the right power for that moment. It will be a great eye-opener, and challenging the geniuses of the world will also help him further increase his rainbow core. Not to mention, we might be able to send him 'there."

Kassius was surprised.

"I see... you are right! With his talent, there is a very big chance of him getting into there."

Kassius suddenly had an idea.

"In that case, If we try not to get attention, it will eventually backfire on us. So we should do the opposite. We should announce it to the others that we found out Krune was even greater of a genius, and he will be participating in the Mercenary Selection. That way, not only will people not get suspicious, but it will help conceal the truth as well."

Bary nodded and accepted the idea.

"But before that, we need to get his opinion. It's better if we discuss things over with him before taking this next step."

Kassius nodded. That was for the best.

Back at Kaley City, Krune was studding the Eye Seal Technique. He had tried to communicate with the Tribulation Lightning in his soul a few more times in the past few days. And he even tempered his soul with the Tribulation Lightning of his core again. But not a single word came out of it. Krune started to feel that it was really his imagination that it talked to him.

He already has some understanding of the Eye Seal Technique and was practicing it when he suddenly got a call from Lu Ganan, the Kaley City Mercenary Guild supervisor.

"Krune, we need you to come to the guild as soon as possible, have you finished practicing the Eye Seal Technique?"

Lu Ganan was also told about Krune's situation, so he is aware of the importance that the guild puts on him now.

Krune nodded.

"I have already grasped part of it, my rainbow eyes aren't that apparent, so it is enough to totally conceal them already. I'm going right now since I'm not doing much at the moment anyway."

After arriving in the mercenary guild, Yusa and the others were there as well. They also had received the same call. It seems it had something to do with Krune's rainbow core, so they came straight away.

After entering Lu Ganan's private office, they could see another man other than supervisor Lu. They immediately recognized him. It was no other than the Head of Mercenary Guild in the Yule Continent, Bary Kasfiu, Mile was also there standing up in a corner.

"So you have come! Take a seat as well. I have some things to talk about."

"My visit to Kaley City is a secret. So, only the people in this office know about that. I will be leaving as soon as I finish dealing with this situation here."

He then looked at everyone and said:

"First of all, Krune's rainbow core information can't be found out, at least not until he reaches the Divine Soul Realm. So I ask you all to keep this a secret."

Everyone's nodded. They knew the importance of a Rainbow Core and a Five Elements Divine Soul: the less the number of people knowing about it, the better.

"Second, I would like Krune to give up the teaching position and participate directly in the Mercenary Selection and then the Martial Gathering."

Krune and the others got puzzled. Wasn't it decided that he would only be teaching the participants?

"I know what you are thinking. But with a Rainbow Core, Krune's combat power is far above his own stage. There are also 10 months to the Martial Gathering. I have confidence he will get to the 6th or maybe even the 7th stage of Foundation Establishment by that. I don't believe he can't protect himself at that point, at least."

He then looked at Krune.

"I also want to announce this news to everyone. Simply put, I want you to be known as much as possible."

Krune immediately shook his head.

"No way! I hate attention. I don't want to have a lot of people following my tail everywhere I go."

Bary shook his head.

"That's why I came here. I'm not doing it to give you more attention. The opposite, I want to do it to bring everyone's attention away from your Rainbow Core."

Krune might have low EQ, but his IQ is definitely different. He immediately understood the crux of the issue.

"I see! You want to use me as a genius so that everyone will pay attention to me. That way, people will think that my combat prowess is probably because of the full support of the mercenary guild behind me. No one would suspect I could possibly have a Rainbow Core."

Bary was happy he had understood so fast.

"It's good that you understand! I will be honest, with your talent, the Makui planet can only do so much for you, and the same for our mercenary guild. If you try to keep yourself hidden all the time, it will start to make things difficult to help you. But you can still stay away from the holophotes. You don't need to go and give interviews or anything like that. Our guild will take care of all those things. People just need to know we have a genius called Krune on whom we are putting a lot of effort. As for everything else, you can keep doing whatever you have been doing so far."

Krune gave a sigh of relief. At least this time, they came to ask his opinion and gave him a proper explanation. He especially liked the part where he wouldn't need to appear and could keep his own plans without being bothered.

Shinja heard all of that and couldn't help, but comment:

"I think the guild head is correct, Krune."

"The further you go, the more you will have to show your power. If you don't, people will sit on your head. It's an excellent deal, in my opinion."

Yusa and Ao also nodded. They know little about the intricacies between the powers of the world. But if Shinja says this is a good thing, they will trust her. Besides, what guild head Bary said so far made a lot of sense.

Noticing that his friends also agreed to the idea, Krune decided to accept. He looked at Bary and asked:

"I don't like the idea of gathering attention, but I have to admit that everyone's words make sense. so, Guild head Bary: what do you want in exchange for all that help?"

Krune knows there is no free lunch in this world. There is definitely something more behind it. Bary looked at him and gave an approving nod.

"There is indeed something I would like you to do for us, or to be more specific, for our Makui Planet cultivators."

Krune was surprised, something for the cultivators of the entire planet?

"You know the Martial Gathering that will happen after the Mercenary Selection. But do you know who organizes it?"

Krune pondered a bit. He had read about the Martial Gathering after he came to know he was going to teach the Yule Continent top contestants for the Mercenary Selection.

"From what I know, this is done by the biggest powers in the world. Several sects, clans, and organizations take part in it."

Bary Kasfiu shook his head.

"That is what we tell to the public. The truth is much deeper than that."

This time even Mile and Lu Ganan's attention was picked. They didn't know about it either.

"To be honest. This isn't any super-secret! Sooner or later, anyone with the right amount of power would find out. It's just an unspoken rule not to comment about that. The power behind it isn't something that anyone in the Makui Planet can afford to offend after all."

Krune suddenly remembered which power controlled the North East side of the western protectorate where the Makui Planet is localized.

"Could it have anything to do with the Divine Path Sect?"

The Divine Path Sect was the last of the Big Four, also the one who controlled the North East side of the Western Protectorate. The Makui Planet just happens to be part of the North East Side. So they are under the jurisdiction of the Divine Path Sect.

"Correct! To protect their territory, the Divine Path Sect needs a constant flow of new cultivators to join their ranks. But only the real geniuses can enter. That's the use of the Martial Gathering: to filter Makui Planet's good seeds and send them over to try the Divine Path Sect's entrance exam. Unfortunately, there are thousands if not tens of thousands of planets in the North East Side alone. Maybe even more. Because of that, our Makui Planet hasn't had one of our cultivators joining the Divine Path Sect in over a millennium."

Krune then said.

"And, do you think I will have a bigger chance than the others to pass the Divine Path Sect entrance exam thanks to my Rainbow Core and my ability to control some of the Tribulation Lightning power ?"

Bary nodded his head. Krune had already had an idea, but he decided to ask anyway.

"And how can sending your geniuses away help the Makui Planet?"

Bary understood Krune's meaning.

"That is very simple! The Divine Path Sect only accepts geniuses, but those geniuses that can stand up to the sect standard requirement are few and far between. So any planet that gives birth to such geniuses will receive great help from the Divine Path Sect. After all, even if our planet is a small and weak one, they'll never know where a real genius could appear, and that's why we have the Martial Gathering. As for the help that they will provide, it will be both in the form of rare cultivation resources as well as cultivation techniques and skills. For a planet like ours, such help will improve the cultivation world several times. And as the guild that discovered that genius, our mercenary guild will receive even more resources."

"But that isn't all. It's not only us who will benefit from it! You too will get a lot from the Divine Path Sect: resources, techniques, pills, and other things our Makui Planet would never be able to provide."

Krune pondered a bit. Exactly what he thought.

'I was already expecting that sooner or later, I would have to stop hiding my powers. I just didn't think it would be so soon. I wanted, at least, to be a Divine Soul cultivator before that. But it seems I can't delay it anymore. Why is it so hard to keep a low profile?'

'Oh well, forget it! I will need to make a name for myself if I want to keep that married promise anyway. But that is considering that she still remembers it, which I find hard to believe. But it also doesn't matter. Simply keeping that promise isn't my only objective anymore! Maybe, just maybe, I can get enough power to help the wisps situation, after seeing how serious Lakin was about keeping them safe, how can I, his master, stay put and only watch?'

Krune took a deep breath, and a look of determination appeared in his eyes.

"Very well, I accept your idea. Tell me more about this Divine Sect entrance exam."

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Bary heard that and was ecstatic. As long as Krune himself is willing to try, the rest can be taken care of.

"As you probably guess, only the best-ranked cultivators of the Martial Gathering will be sent to the Divine Path Sect entrance exam. In this case, it is the first ten places. Don't think this is too much! There is a lot of big powers in our world. Each one of them has between three and five slots for the Martial Gathering. In the end, the martial gathering will have at least a few hundred competing for those ten slots. It is very hard to get there!"

Krune nodded. That's to be expected. If it were that easy to enter the Divine Path Sect, there would be no need for sending the best ten, just send everyone and get over with it.

"The Martial Gathering happens every ten years, and the Divine Path Sect entrance exam, the same. So, not only us but, in general, all planets have their competitions around three to six months before the entrance exam. That is because only those below the age of forty can participate. So to avoid having people becoming above the age necessary after joining the trip, we all make the gatherings around the same time."

Krune then thought about one thing.

"What about Shinja, then? She is already at the Core Formation Realm. Does it mean she can't participate in the Divine Path Sect entrance anymore?"

Shinja was happy Krune had asked that. She also wished to know the answer to that question, but Bary simply smiled.

"You saw with your own eyes how hard it is for a cultivator to enter the Core Formation Realm. Here, in our Makui Planet, simply put, a lot of people die during the process. But the real reason is that they simply wait until they are close to the end of their life span as Foundation Establishment cultivators to try the breakthrough. For that reason, cultivators like Shinja, who are below the age of forty and are already in the Core Formation Realm, are extremely rare. So there is no need for her to participate in a martial gathering. If she wants, she can try the Divine Path Sect entrance exam when the time comes."

Krune understood the situation. Indeed, Core Formation is very dangerous. It's no wonder the majority is over forty, with over a hundred years of life ahead of then. Then, why should they try something this dangerous? Krune, of course, didn't have this option.

"Our planet indeed has quite a lot of Core Formation Stage cultivators. But believe it or not, not even a hundred are below the age of forty. But we have thousands above it, and, between those below forty years old, not a lot wish to try the Divine Path Sect test due to its difficult. I will be impressed if we get even twenty of those below forty to come to try the entrance exam."

Krune couldn't help but ask:

"Then, why are there so many people wishing to try it in the Foundation Establishment?"

As soon as Krune made this question, he understood the reason. In fact, it could be said that it was a very idiotic question. So he immediately corrected himself.

"Forget it, no need to answer! If I'm not wrong, those who join the Divine Path Sect will have a much easier time to enter the Core Formation Realm. Simply put, it will be much safer."

Bary smiled and nodded. That was right. With the techniques and skills available for the Divine Path Sect, breaking through the Core Formation Stage can be considered very safe, totally different from the situation in Makui Planet.

Bary then explained a few more things and was just about to leave when Ao suddenly asked:

"Would there be a problem if I took part in the selection as well?"

Krune looked at him surprised but didn't say anything. Bary heard the question and answered straight away.

"Any Three Stars Mercenary can try their luck in the selection. So yes, you can!"

After Bary left, Krune talked a little with everyone and went back to his house to finish practicing the Eye Seal Technique. Shinja, otherwise, went back to her own to finish stabilizing her cultivation and get used to the Core Formation Realm power.

Yusa and Ao were walking together when she decided to ask:

"Are you sure you want to go? It's not like we have Krune's Rainbow Core or Shinja's Pure Yin Body, you know?"

Ao nodded.

"We don't. But we do have the Spiritual Energy Meridians."

Ao looked up to the sky and then said:

"Have you noticed? So far, we have basically relied on Krune when things go south. I don't want to keep it like that. Instead, I want to forge my own path, as well. The Divine Path Sect entrance exam is a good opportunity to prove that everything I got from Krune was not in vain. I refuse to keep being a burden."

Yusa was taken aback with that statement. She has always been very easygoing, so she had never thought about it. Only now Ao brought this issue up, she noticed he was right.

"Besides, I believe Krune will definitely pass the Divine Path Sect Exam, so he will eventually leave. What are you planning to do after that? Watch him and Shinja flying far away while you stay behind to be a big tycoon on a small planet!"

Ao took a deep breath and continued:

"Don't underestimate the Spiritual Energy Meridians. I'm sure I can do much more than I could have ever hoped for, only with this. I refuse to believe that once I open my own, I won't have the capability to fight against the geniuses of our world. I might not reach Krune or Shinja's power. But I will definitely try to do so! Think about it carefully. Is staying behind really what you want?"

After saying that, Ao parted ways with Yusa. He is very close to finishing his last pseudo energy meridians. There is no doubt he will have them opened by the time the selection starts.

Yusa, on the other hand, was lost. She always thought it would be fine, as long as she got her own place in the Makui Planet. But everyone else seems to have much bigger aspirations. A sense of alarm started to grow in her heart. She looked in the direction Ao left and went back to do her own things.

Back at Krune's place, he was again training his Eye Seal Technique, although it had 'seal' in the name. In fact, it only 'sealed' the color of his eyes. The power stayed there still, much to Krune's delight; it only took him a few more days to finish grasping the technique entirely.

'With this, I can now focus back on my plans. I've already finished looking into all the studied materials of the Formations Guild. So I should go back there and try some practical training.'

Krune didn't waste time and went back to the Formations Guild straight away. Then he got a few items used to construct low-level formations. He is pretty confident in being able to build higher-level ones without mistake. But it's always better to be safe. So he got to try low-level ones first.

The guild had a few rooms reserved, especially for new recruits to try out their low-level formations. It had enough space to build almost any low-level formation, and give the recruit enough privacy to work out.

After spreading his Divine Sense far enough to cover the room he was using, he started to set up a simple cloud formation. This one is basically used for making it rain. It interacts with the water element by condensing them into clouds. It's a very simple one and used by a lot of alchemists to water their herb gardens.

Thanks to the All-Encompassing Soul Technique, it was really easy to ascertain the points where the water element would converge. His high sensitivity to the elements, due to the Spiritual Energy Meridians, he was able to pinpoint the best locations in the room where the water element would flow the best. Krune was really immersed in the feeling of creating the formation. He found it to be very amusing, and, for this reason, he didn't notice. But this simple cloud formation of his had already achieved the Three Stars level. It only wasn't a Four Stars because the materials used were of low quality. One must remember that every single Star is a great change in the prowess of the formation. After finishing the setup, Krune activated it.

Karen is one of the employees of the Formations Guild and a One-Star Formation Master herself. She was responsible for keeping the low-level test rooms in good condition for the new recruits to try out their formations. She didn't like danger. The guild's payment was enough for her cultivation, and there was still enough to buy some materials for herself to practice her formations.

Today she was doing the same as always. She got the information that one of the rooms which one of the new recruits was using got vacant. It means she has to go there and check if the formations of the room itself are still in good shape. Failed formations might cause damage to the environment, or even explode due to the wrong set up of spiritual energy. So the formations of the rooms themselves always had to be ready for anything. She was just passing by the door of one of the rooms being used at the moment, when suddenly, she noticed there was water coming from the gaps of the door, puzzling her much.

'Weird, the formation of the room should have sealed the room completely. How come there is water coming from the gaps?'

It was that moment she thought about something.

'I see, the formation of this room probably was damaged by someone else before the new guy entered the room.'

She couldn't help but sigh.

'Unfortunately, I will have to ask him to stop for now and change rooms. I hate stopping people who are working hard in the middle of their work, but those are the rules.'

She then decided to open the formation sealing the room.

Little did Karen know. But the formation protecting the room was working perfectly fine. It's just that inside the room she was going to open, Krune was fighting…

It looked like the room had welcomed the apocalypse, fighting against a raging sea and a storm that thundered nonstop above his head. His body was being tossed everywhere. He could barely keep his head out of the water. Krune was already crying inside.

"WhY Did iT tURn ouT LIKE THiiiiIIIiIiIIs?!"

At first, everything was okay. Krune's formation made a lot of rain fall down, but that was it. It was then Krune noticed that wasn't the limit of his new Cloud Formation. He decided to test how good the formation he built with the help of the Soul Technique and his Meridians was. So… he fed it a 'few' of his Rank Four High-Quality Spirit Stones, terrible idea though.

Outside, Karen was in front of the door. And as soon as she had undone the formation protecting the room, the door exploded. A tsunami of water swept her, and everyone close to it. Poor Karen! She was even worse, the door hit her face head-on. In just a few seconds, the entire hall was underwater. Finally, the low-level formation couldn't hold the flow of spiritual energy anymore and broke apart. The storm in the training room disappeared, and the water started to go down.

Finally, when everyone got a hold of themselves, they looked in the direction of the room from where the water came. In the place where once there was a door, Krune came out completely soaked. He looked at the disaster that had become the hall and felt like dying right there and then.

"Cough, Cough. As expected of a formation provided by the Formations Guild, this cloud formation prowess is quite good."

This was an excellent start for someone who gave up the low-key life.

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Cloud Formation? Everyone looked at each other, and they couldn't help but think.

'Since when does our guild have such a heaven-defying cloud formation?'

Karen's mood was terrible. Her nose was purple, and one could see blood coming out of it. Of course, she noticed that and took a low- level healing pill. Although the pill was a little expensive for her, as a woman, she couldn't possibly walk around like that.

Not long after, a middle-aged woman appeared in the hall. When she looked at the flood, her face contorted quite a bit. She looked at Karen, who was responsible for the training rooms, and only saw her pointing at a certain guy.

The middle-aged woman then sent a Divine Sense message to Karen and left. Karen took a deep breath and approached Krune, who was still spacing out.

"Would you mind to follow me, sir?"

Krune came back to himself and just nodded. He couldn't possibly simply leave after what he had done.

After arriving at a private room, the middle-aged woman was already there. She was no other than the supervisor of the Formations Guild, Lola Javes. Unlike the Alchemist Guild and Mercenary Guild of Kaley City, who had supervisors at the Four-Star Level, Lola herself was a Five-Star Formations Masters. She could have applied to another bigger guild branch if she wanted, but she liked Kaley City, so she remained.

She looked at Krune. Because of the flood, Krune's hat, which he liked to use to hide his rainbow hair, was long gone to who knows where, and so Lola was able to recognize him straight away.

"Does your Mercenary Guild have something against my Formations Guild?"

She couldn't care less if Krune was a genius or not. She loves the guild by which she is in charge of. Anyone who tries to purposely cause havoc here will be dealt with no mercy!

Krune immediately shook his head vigorously, even he didn't expect something like that to happen.

"Speak, how did it turn out like that? Also, don't think you can scape without paying for the damage. Otherwise, I will bring a war to your Mercenary Guild doorsteps."

Those were the words that Krune was most afraid of! Paying for the damage!

"Well, it went like this…"

Krune explained the situation, and Lola was amazed after he finished talking.

"Are you telling me that with a simple cloud formation, you created that flood? Do you take me for a fool? You would need to reach a Three-Star level, maybe even Four, to get that power of this formation. Not to mention that you would need at least some Rank Four-Spirit Stones on top of that."

Krune looked at her, surprised.

"I don't know if my formation was at the Three-Star level, but I did use Rank Four High-Quality Spirit Stones."

Lola's mouth twitched. Who the hell would waste Rank Four Spirit Stones on a cloud formation? And it was High Quality at that. But she reminded herself that Krune was a genius of element control, so she decided to test his words first.

"I will bring you to another training room where you will set up the same formation again. If your formation doesn't reach the Three- Stars level, your guild will have to answer for your acts."

Krune nodded and followed her. After taking out a few more materials, he started to build the cloud formation again. He used his soul technique and meridians to pinpoint the locations for the water element. After thirty-some minutes, he was done. Lola looked at the formation and had to admit it really reached the Three-Star level! She was impressed that Krune could create this formation with such low-level materials.

"Hmph! At least you were not lying! I will keep my word and won't bother your Mercenary Guild, but you will still have to pay for the damage. You have no problem with that, right?"

Krune felt like crying but didn't refuse. Even if he didn't want to damage the guild, it doesn't change the fact he was the one who did it. He isn't shameless enough like Yusa to renege his doing.

Lola called Karen and some other employees of the guild and asked them to do a check out of how much it would cost to repair everything. Not long after, they came back with the numbers.

"After calculating all the electronic and spiritual equipment destroyed by the flood, the total price was 337 Rank Three Middle- Quality spirit stones. Considering the time to replace everything and the work of the formations masters to rebuild the hall formations, it went up to 125 Rank Four Low-Quality spirit stones."

Krune let out a sigh of relief. Only now did he remember that Rank Four Spirit Stones were precious. With the amount he had at the moment, it became a small issue to pay it over.

Lola checked every spirit stone and then nodded. After that, she entered the next topic.

"Alright! Although I still don't like you, the damage issue is over with. I checked the system and found out you haven't been a formation master yet. Are you here to become one?"

Krune immediately nodded. He needs access to the information on Teleport Formations after all.

"Very well, go to the Register Office and give them the necessary information. Your badge will be delivered soon after."

Krune was taken aback, that simple?

"Errrr, what about the test?"

Lola looked at Krune as if she were looking at an idiot.

"You can already use low-level materials to set up a Three-Star Formation. And it is even a simple Cloud Formation on top of that. The test is there for those who don't know whether they have reached the One-Star Formations Master yet. Do you really think you can't build a One-Star Formation?"

Krune had to admit that he asked an extremely idiotic question. Not to mention that this guild branch supervisor wants him to leave her guild as soon as possible. She obviously couldn't stand his face.

Krune wasn't sad, though. He can get the information for the Short- Distance teleportation formation and leave straight away before anything else happens. Although he lost some spirit stones, the end result was exactly what he wanted.

Krune was once again waiting for his badge, and, once again, it started to take forever for them to give it to him. He felt like he was seeing a déjà vu.

'I don't like this pattern!'

Back at Lola's office, she was discussing with the Formations Guild Headquarters about Krune's situation.

"He broke my guild hall. There is no way I'm giving him a Four-Star Badge. If you want, come here and give it yourselves. I was about to give him a One Star, and you can consider it as me being very considerate already. No, wait! First of all, how did you even find about it?"

The person on the other side of the line was the supervisor of the reviews office of the Formations Headquarters, Gimble Luos.

"The Mercenary Guild just informed the other guilds they had changed their decision of having Krune teaching elements control to their contestants. He is now directly participating in the Mercenary Selection and then the Martial Gathering. From what we could find, the Mercenary Guild is putting a lot of effort to raise him, so the other powers are keeping a close look."

"When his name appeared in the Formations Guild system, we immediately recovered the training-room video and saw him building up that almost Four-Star Cloud Formation with simple and ordinary materials. He is definitely at the level of a Four-Star Formations Master. It doesn't matter how much you dislike him, you can't deny his talent!"

Lola's face was dark. It's not that she doesn't like Krune. She simply doesn't like geniuses in general. She was considered a genius in formations already, but only she knows the truth. Her talent could only be regarded as average. It was through a huge amount of effort that she got where she is today, which, coupled with the fact that he destroyed her guildhall, made her first impression of him be a very bad one.

Gimble knows her. They studied under the same master in the past. That's why he was the one who was calling about this issue. Otherwise, the higher-ups would have intervened already.

"Okay, I will help you apply for the extra funding you have been hoping for since the start of the year. With this, we are even. How about that?"

Lola's face immediately improved.

"Are you serious?"

"I am! But I can only help put some good words for you. The rest still will depend on yourself. Consider this as your senior brother's favor."

Lola pondered a bit. That funding would help her increase the Formation Guild size. As one of the cities separating the country from one of the danger zones, Kaley City received a lot of cultivators year-round. Her guild was already having some problems coping with the flow of cultivators requesting for services at her guild.

"Very well, I will take your offer. But don't expect me treating him like some gem or anything like that, you know me!"

"Great! Then I will pass the orders to accept Krune's ability review. This might help us build some good relationship with the mercenary guild too."

Gimble finished the call, and shortly after, the approval for passing over a Four-Star Formations Master badge arrived. Lola stood up and went to the room where Krune was waiting. After arriving there, she simply tossed the badge over to him.

"The guild decided to make you a Four-Star Formations Master, I was against it, but they have already made their mind. So you can use it from now on."

Krune smiled bitter, it was just as he thought.

"Errr, you aren't planning to make any propaganda over this or anything like that, right?"

Lola's mouth twitched.

"Propaganda your head! If it depended on me, you would receive a single start badge and nothing more. The Formations Guild Headquarters only want to build some relationship with your Mercenary Guild. It seems like it has something to do with the fact you are taking part in the Mercenary Selection and Martial Gathering. But I couldn't care less. As long as you don't destroy my guild again, we are good with each other."

Lola looked at Krune's face, and surprisingly, he didn't look sad at all. In fact, it looked like he was about to cry out of happiness.

And she was right. She instantly became the guild branch supervisor that Krune loved the most! It was the second time in his life Krune felt that a human female looked beautiful.

"Thank you, supervisor Lola. I will make sure to not break anything here anymore. From now on, I will conduct all my own practicing at my own place."

Lola didn't understand why he looked so happy, but she didn't care either. She simply nodded and left.

Krune immediately accessed the information available for Four-Star Formations Masters. He found out the two Formations he wanted the most, the Spirit Gathering Formation and the Short Distance Teleport Formation.

'The Spirit Gathering Formation is quite simple, but the Short Distance Teleport Formation is totally different. It needs a lot of materials as well, not to mention that I need to practice it. It will cost me quite a few Spirit Stones.'

But Krune didn't mind. He can now request some help in resources from the Mercenary Guild. Since they have announced that they will support him fully, it would be idiotic from his part if he didn't use this opportunity correctly.

Krune isn't afraid that they will try to find out where he is building those formations. They are partners now, and the Mercenary Guild put a lot of importance on his Rainbow Core. The last thing they want is to scare Krune away. Any secret he might have can't be compared with the resources they will receive if Krune joins the Divine Path Sect.

Krune was just about to leave the Formations Guild when he remembered one thing. He went to the guildhall again and soon found Karen repairing a Formation.

"Hi there."

Karen noticed who came, and her mood turned solemn again.

"Errr, sorry for what happened with the door."

Krune then took two healing pills he made and passed over to her.

"These are Three-Star Healing Pills I made. It can heal the injury in your nose completely. In fact, it could even save your life as long as the injury isn't too serious, and I hope you can accept it."

Krune might have low EQ, but at least he has learned that human females put a lot of importance on their appearance, especially their faces, thus, the healing pills.

Karen was taken aback with that. Before she could even answer, Krune put the pills on her hand and left straight away. He has a lot to do after all and couldn't wait forever.

Karen looked at those pills and was at a loss of what to do. Three-star pills are worth a fortune for someone like her. She daren't use one of them to heal an injury as simple as the one in her nose. She decided to keep one with herself for an emergency and sell the other one later. She looked at the direction Krune left and couldn't help but think Krune's face wasn't so bad to look at anymore.

Krune immediately went to the Mercenary Guild in Kaley City, and requested the materials he needed. Lu Ganan didn't say or ask anything and just provided the materials. Those materials might be a lot for Krune to bank alone, but it wasn't much at all for the Mercenary Guild.

Krune then returned to his house and started to practice setting up the short-distance teleportation formation. He will need some time to understand it completely because teleportation formations are dangerous if they go wrong. The space power might turn you into pieces. There could be no mistaking in its set up.

Meanwhile, on another side of the city, Yusa was leaving the Runestone Formations guild. In her hands, she had a Two-Star Runestone Formations Master. As mentioned before, Runestone Formations are very popular for being able to be brought around. They could more or less be said to be a branch of the Formations Guild. The difference is that Runestone Formations have limited time of use, while regular formations can stay in place for years.

Yusa could have got a Three-Star Badge. But their group had decided she should hide the fact she can use more than one element at the same time for the time being. So she could only make one-element Two-Star Runestone Formations. Yusa looked at the badge on her hand, but her face showed her mind was somewhere else.

'Leave or not leave. The old saying says that it's better to be a head of a chicken than the tail of a dragon, but will I really become just the tail if I leave? At the same time, will I really become the head if I stay?'

She then remembered her conversation with Ao.

'I will try my luck at the Mercenary Selection first. Depending on the results, I will decide what to do.'

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Time passed, and two months went by. Everyone spent their time improving their skills. During this time, Ao and Yusa took two missions in the name of the team. As Krune and Shinja were a lot busier, they went alone. With their strength, they could complete missions at their level with ease and lift some of the team's overall burden.

Krune kept practicing the Short-Distance Teleport Formation as well as going to the Alchemist Guild to concoct some pills to make some money. Supervisor Go Gao buzzed on his ears when he discovered that Krune decided to take part in the mercenary selection. However, Krune didn't mind; he simply said that if the alchemist really has a problem with it, he will leave the guild. That was enough to shut his mouth. Worse than having Krune taking dangers, it would be losing his talent completely. He still believes that Krune should focus on alchemy only, though.

Krune had also advanced to the 6th stage of Foundation Establishment. Because of the over half a year without cultivating at all, his planet in his foundation stabilized. Even after this breakthrough, he didn't feel he needed to wait again. Krune is expecting to be on the 7th or maybe even the 8th stage by the time the mercenary selection starts.

On Ao Sulian's side, he had finally completed his last pseudo meridian and is already trying to build his first Spiritual Energy Meridian. According to what Krune could see, Ao would probably need one or at most two more weeks to get it done. His cultivation is already in the middle of the 7th stage. Ao could have pushed his cultivation further, but just like Krune, his breakthroughs got too fast. He had to stop there for a while to stabilize his foundation as well. It gave him time to practice his swords skills and to pay more attention to the Myriad Energies Technique.

As for Yusa, she had also entered the 7th stage, just like Ao. She started to make spirit stones with the Runestones Formations to open more Spiritual Energy Meridians. She needs more spirit stones, something she doesn't have much at the moment. She is trying to get as much as possible before returning to the Rainbow Sect Secret Realm. By putting together the reward of the soul endurance test together with what she earns with the runestones, she might be able to open two meridians at once!

Shinja hasn't changed much cultivation related. It is necessary quite some time to adapt to the Core Formation Realm, so she is still at the first stage and will probably stay there a little longer. Now that she entered this realm, the natural control over the elements that comes when one breaks through this realm is now available for her. That, coupled with the soul technique, and Krune's help, she definitely wouldn't have problems fighting those at the 3rd stage, maybe even 4th.

A few weeks later, Krune was inside his house, and one could see another teleport formation taking form. Krune had become very proficient in making this formation and even added the spirit gathering formation on top of it to help save spirit stones. He built two formations on two sides of his house and was about to test their functions.

'Let's see, last time it was almost perfect. It just went wrong because of the wrong energy flow in the outer right corner. This time it should work without a problem.'

Krune then put a box with some spirit stones inside on the formation. The spirit stones inside the box were not for the sake of charging the formation, but for testing whether they can appear on the other side intact. He then put other spirit stones to charge the formation outside. Because the distance was extremely small, there was no need for spirit stones of high level. So he simply used some Rank-One stones, and that was enough. The teleport formation activated, and the formation shined for a second. After that, the box disappeared; the next instant, the box appeared on the other side of the house. Krune went there to check. At first, the box looked okay, but what really mattered was the spirit stones inside.

'Wisps without a human form are basically a large amount of spiritual energy. If the spirit stones teleported correctly without any damage, this formation should be able to do the same with wisps.'

Krune opened the box and let out a sigh of relief. The spirit stones this time were teleported over without any cracks or loss of spiritual energy. That's exactly the effect he wanted to see. He then tried a few more times to guarantee his set up wasn't wrong.

'Great! This should suffice. Thinking it would take me this long to learn how to set up a teleport formation, no wonder the price to set one is out of the charts. This thing is difficult as hell.'

It's good no one heard what Krune had said. Using just two months to set up a teleport formation is already heaven-defying progress. Normal Four Stars Formations Master would take no less than a year to get to the point where he is, which also explains why it is too expensive to employ one to do the service.

He then sent a message to everyone saying that he'd finished his preparations for teleport formation. After talking with everyone a little, they decided Shinja would go to Harta City to rent the teleportation formation first. After she was done, Krune would go to the Rainbow Sect Entrance Gate and set up the formation there.

Krune agreed with that and left the same day to the Katiu Forest. Nothing is stopping him from setting up a formation there already. As for Ao, he went to the Solie Clan to talk with Zu Solie. It would be a secret operation of their group, so they had to make sure everything was going to work okay. Yusa then prepared a few concealing runestones to be used in both city's teleport formations. This way, it would guarantee their safety during the time the teleportation is being used.

With nothing holding him back, Krune took very little time to arrive back where the wisps and his disciple are staying. As soon as he arrived, he entered the spiritual vein lake cave room and set up the formation using the spiritual vein as the main source of energy. This spiritual vein might only generate low-level spirit stones. However, the vein itself still has a lot of spiritual energy inside. It was a very good source of energy, even at the low level. Lakin saw that and couldn't help but ask.

"Master, won't the spiritual vein get damaged if we use its source energy?"

Krune nodded.

"Probably, but it's okay since we are leaving. And, with time, it will recover itself, so there is no need to worry."

Lakin sighed. He didn't want to see anything happening with the spiritual vein after staying there for so long. But then again, it was for the safety of the wisps. Since his master said that it would recover eventually, he decided not to say anything else. He also wanted to talk about another problem but decided to wait for his master to finish the formation first. It seemed a very complicated process, after all.

Krune looked around while he was setting up the formation and couldn't help but ask:

"Is it me or the number of wisps increased?"

Lakin didn't deny that.

"It did. Since we were going away with them, I extended the range of my search and ended up finding a few more. This is just a drop of water in the ocean, but I still wanted to bring as many wisps as possible."

Krune understood that, but there was one thing puzzling him.

"But how exactly did you find so many? Even during the time I went everywhere as wisps, I rarely got to see other wisps; usually, we keep hiding after all."

Lakin's face turned serious, but he still answered.

"Master, do you remember you said you didn't mind the kind of foundation I used?"

Krune nodded. As long as Lakin was successful in building his foundation, Krune would be happy. So he had never asked what type of foundation he used in the end.

"Well, master said that you looked at how I was born to think over about the Universe Foundation. But I haven't had the luck of seeing it even once until now. But since you could use the moment a wisp was born as a base for a foundation, why couldn't I use myself, a wisp, as foundation too?"

Krune was taken aback. Use the form of a wisp as foundation? He had never thought about that.

"So, your foundation basically has the form of a wisp?"

Lakin nodded.

"But something weird happened after I succeed in building this foundation. I started to get sensitive to wisps energy, even without using Divine Sense. As long as they aren't too far away from me, I can feel their presence. That's how I appeared in the cave entrance when the master first came back. I felt that a wisp was approaching our spiritual vein cave at that time."

Krune was very surprised by that. A foundation using a wisp's form this kind of foundation might not be as sturdy as a universe foundation. But it is probably, no, it definitely is much rarer.

"I see, no wonder…"

"Oh right, after you have completed your wisp foundation, did you get a heavenly tribulation?"

Lakin shook his head.

"I was also afraid that it might summon a heavenly tribulation. So I practiced the formation of Spiritual Energy Meridians for a time before trying it out. In case a tribulation came down, I could use the same method as master did to save me. But in the end, it never appeared."

Krune nodded and didn't say anything else. He had to focus on the formation. A few hours later, Krune finished setting up the Short Distance Teleport Formation.

"Alright! With this, we are set up on this side. I need to go to the Raskie Danger Zone now. The entrance to the Rainbow Sect is there. After finishing setting everything up, I will come back for us to move out."

Krune was about to leave when Lakin brought another issue up.

"What is it?"

Lakin took a deep breath and told what was bothering him.

"A few days ago, a group of the Foundation Establishment cultivators passed by. I couldn't feel any Divine Sense coming into our lair, though. But in the middle of their group, it seemed like there was a guy who definitely had a high level of cultivation. So, whether he checked things or not, I can't tell. The difference in cultivation level was too big. They stayed close but didn't do anything. After a few hours, they left."

It was then that Krune remembered one thing. On his way here, he did indeed find a group of Foundation Establishment cultivators moved at high speeds in the opposite direction. They were obviously going back to Kaley City. At that time, he didn't pay attention since groups of cultivators walking together in the Katiu Forest wasn't anything strange.

"They probably took a look at the demon beasts defending the entrance. They concluded that it would cause too many casualties if they attacked with the force they had that moment. So they went back to get reinforcements, this complicates things."

Staying here to defend the lair would be a foolish action. If they failed in the attack, they would flee and call even more people. The number of wisps staying in the spiritual vein lake can make even some Core Formation Experts take action. It means that Krune has to move back and set up the Raskie Danger Zone Short Distance Teleport Formation straight away. Thus, he can't stay to start with.

'What I'm lacking is time. I could send them over to the Solie Clan first and keep them there until I finish the Raskie Danger Zone teleport formation. But that would be even more dangerous. If anything goes wrong, and people find out that such an enormous number of wisps with high-level cultivations are staying in the Solie Clan, maybe even the law won't stop their greed. That moment, we are going to be helpless.'

Krune pondered a bit and looked at the Direction of the Teleport Formation he built.

'I was planning to have someone checking the other side first to see whether whatever I sent would arrive safely. But I guess I can only try it straight away.'

Krune got close to the teleport formation and double-checked it again. There is no doubt it was exactly the same as the one he made back at his home. He put some spirit stones to help with the spiritual energy of the spiritual vein and stepped on it. He took a deep breath and set up the coordinates of the Solie Clan Teleport Formation.

"Activate!"

Back at the Solie Clan, everything was calm. Ao had already left a few days ago. He had told Zu Solie about the use of the teleportation formation to move a few important secret things. The Clan Head didn't mind; he had to give Krune his full support at all times, after all. So he was waiting for the day it was going to happen. But then he received a message that their Teleport Formation was receiving someone coming from a coordinate never used before. Zu Solie was puzzled. According to Ao Sulian, it would still take some time before they used the teleport formation.

"Let's take a look!"

When he arrived there, Krune was already in front of the formation. He looked quite frightened. No wonder! If the teleport formation he built had any mistake, he would have been torn to pieces by the space warping power. Noticing who it was, Zu Solie went forward to compliment him when, suddenly, Krune rushed out like a flash of light.

"It seems he doesn't want to talk."

Seeing that, he simply shook his head and went back to do his own things.

Krune was moving in the Mercenary Guilds direction. On the way, he contacted Yusa and Ao, who were still in the city and explained the situation to them. Hearing that, they immediately came out to receive Krune.

"What do you need?"

Krune was in a hurry, so he was direct.

"I have to take the materials for another teleport formation in the guild and then move out immediately. I don't know whether I will be able to set up the last formation in time! So I need you to stay there and buy me time. You can use the teleport formation in the Solie Clan to move directly inside the spiritual vein lake. I left the coordinates written in your communicators after I teleport to Harta City. I will send Shinja back to help you too."

Ao and Yusa nodded. They were confident that if a Core Formation Realm cultivator didn't come, they would be able to hold the fort, even without Shinja. But she will be joining then shortly after anyway. So they shouldn't have any issue at first. They immediately went back to the Solie Clan using the teleportation to go back where Lakin and Ruik were waiting. Since Krune was able to use the teleport formation with no problem, it means that his teleport formation is working perfectly fine.

After getting the materials he needed in the Mercenary Guild, Krune went back to the Solie Clan but teleported to the Harta City instead. After arriving there, he got in contact with Shinja to find where the Long Distance Teleport Formation was located.

As he already expected, the Long Distance teleport formations were all in the Formations Guild of Harta City. Shinja had already paid for the use and gave Krune the authority over it.

"I'm fine alone. I can go to the Rainbow Sect on my own. But I need you to go where Lakin and the others are staying. I hope to finish it fast enough, but the Rainbow Sect is further away from Harta City than Lakin is from Kaley City. However, since I'm alone, I won't need to hold back. With some luck, I can finish everything before any fight is to occur."

Shinja shook her head.

"Even if there is a fight, it won't be a problem. I wanted to test my skills anyway, and this is an excellent opportunity."

Krune nodded and recorded the coordinates of the teleport formation that they had rented. After that, he left straight away. He could count only with Shinja and the others now. Since they've already had a Long Distance teleport formation, Shinja used it to move back to the Solie Clan. From there, she teleported again to where Yusa and the others were waiting.

Krune wasn't wrong. With no one following him, he is definitely faster than any ordinary Late Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. The problem is the distance to arrive, which is much bigger. It still took him five days at full speed to arrive at the entrance of the Rainbow Sect.

'Well then, let's start.'

Back at Katiu Forest, a group of cultivators was moving straight away to the Spiritual Vein Lake Cave. On the front, one could see a long-haired man who acted as the guide, whose name was Huse Cout. Just beside him, there was an older man with white hair. Because of the spiritual energy around him, one could easily say that he is a Core Formation Expert. His name was Hary Cout. Huse just so happened to be his son. Behind them, one could see another ten some cultivators. They were all in the middle stage of the Foundation Establishment, and judging their robes' insignia, they were obviously from the same clan as the white-haired old man.

"Father, we are almost there! what do you plan on doing?"

Hary looked at his son and said:

"Of course, it's going to be a frontal attack. We need to use the wisp nets to prevent those wisps from dissipating their cores. So we can't lose time!"

"You are sure you saw several wisps with cultivation over the 7th stage of Qi Condensation, right?"

Huse nodded.

"I'm sure! There were even two in the 9th stage. Also, in the middle of the demon beasts, there was a white-robed youth as well. He definitely isn't human, and all the wisp seemed to respect him very much. I believe he might really be a Foundation Establishment Wisp in Human Form."

Hary got excited every time he heard about it. If he can get that youth wisp and use his energy, he can definitely break through the bottleneck that had been bothering him for years. Hary is a perfect example of someone who used several wisps and pills to reach the stage he is at the moment. Because of that, his foundation is as poor as one could be unless he gets even better pills. He practically has no hope of advancing his cultivation anymore. Buying low-level wisps to help with his cultivation makes no difference in his state anymore either. But that youth, who might be a Foundation Establishment wisp, is an entirely different story.

"Very well! If you are right and we get to capture all those wisps, I will let you be the next leader of our clan. This will be an accomplishment your brothers will never be able to surpass."

Huse heard that and was ecstatic. At first, he wanted to charge with his group and take everything for himself. But, after seeing the number of demon beasts defending the place, he understood it would be too dangerous. Even if he succeeded, he would probably lose the majority of wisps. His group didn't go into the Katiu Forest because of wisps. After all, fortunately, he was the only one with a Divine Sense big enough to be able to see what was inside that cave lair. So he returned to the city and gave an excuse to the other cultivators. After that, he went to see his father straight away and told him everything.

"Let's hurry up!"

One hour later, they finally arrived at the mountain range where the cave was located. Hary immediately used his Divine Sense and covered the entire mountain. He wouldn't let any wisp flee under his eyes. That moment, he stopped.

"Everyone, wait!"

Huse and the other cultivators looked at Hary, puzzled. There should be no need for them to wait against that level of resistance. It was then they saw a woman dressed in blue coming out of the cave entrance. Behind her, one could see another woman and a man. By checking the spiritual energy around those people, Hary could tell that the woman was also at the Core Formation Realm, while the two behind her were at the 7th stage of the Foundation Establishment.

Hary was surprised. Because there was no doubt, those three were humans, just like him. All the beasts and the youth he wanted to capture seemed to treat them with a lot of respect.

"May I ask who this fellow cultivator is?"

Shinja looked cold as ice, but she answered anyway:

"Shinja Avril, Four Stars Mercenary."

Hary's mouth twitched. He can see that Shinja is at the 1st stage of the Core Formation Realm. But the fact she is a Four-Stars Mercenary showed she could fight those with cultivation level higher than herself. And it wasn't just one or two stages higher! He himself is at the 5th Stage. But his aptitude is very ordinary! Unless he uses a few tricks, he can't fight anyone with a cultivation higher than himself.

"May I know whether this fellow cultivator is planning to control all the wisps? We don't need to fight over it! There is enough for both parts to be satisfied. We can reach an agreement here."

Shinja and the others heard that, and their faces became dark.

"I agree."

Hary felt relieved for a second. But then he heard Shinja's next words:

"This is the agreement! You and your bunch will leave straight away, and I will pretend you didn't talk about my friends as they were some kind of commodity you can buy and sell anywhere."

Hary and everyone were taken aback.

Friends? Wisp friends? Could they have heard it wrong?

"Do you take me for a fool? Who would believe those words?"

Shinja didn't give a damn if he believes her or not. But for the sake of not engaging in battle and having her side suffering casualties, she still played along.

"If you don't believe me, then take out a blood contract and write down exactly what I'll say. I will sign it right in front of you. If you don't believe me even with a blood contract, then there is nothing I can do other than fight."

This time, Hary couldn't answer. If she really signs the contract, then it will prove she is speaking the truth. Hary has lived for a long time already, he can more or less tell she will definitely sign it just to confirm her words. His face then turned vicious. No matter what, he needs that youth who is probably a Foundation Establishment wisp. Otherwise, he will have no hope of advancing anymore.

"I don't care if you are telling the truth or not. I want my wisps. If you don't retreat or make an agreement to share them with us, we can only fight then."

Shinja then took out her frozen hairpin. It was a weapon made for Core Formation cultivators. This one, in particular, improved the flow of water element of her skills. She intended to use it during the Core Formation Realm Tribulation, but, thanks to Krune 'eating' two of the lightning, she was able to hold without damaging the hairpin.

Ao behind her already took his sword out. He might not be able to do anything to the Core Formation cultivator. But he is absolutely confident against the others. He especially wants to test his combat prowess now that he opened his Spiritual Energy Meridians. And Huse, who was at the 9th stage of Foundation Establishment, was a good starter.

Yusa doesn't have a weapon to use, but she brought a lot of runestone formations. She knows she's the best at support, so she will help everyone from behind, not to mention that she also can fight those above her level. Thus she should not have any issue on holding back a few of those middle-stage Foundation Establishment guys.

Both Sides were tense. It was obvious that none would retreat. The demon beast signed a contract with Lakin that they would help defend the cave, so they couldn't leave either. Lakin and Ruik also have Spiritual Energy Meridians, so they can fight cultivators above their levels too. They selected one of the middle stage guys each and were ready to advance.

Shinja looked behind her and sent a Divine Sense message to everyone:

"It has already been a few days since Krune left for the Rainbow Sect Secret Realm. As long as we can defend against this attack, it won't matter if they flee and bring reinforcements later. Krune will definitely have finished everything by then, so focus on keeping yourselves alive, no need for desperate attempts."

Everyone nodded and got ready. On the other side, seeing that Shinja's group did not give up made Hary's face darken. He raised his hand and then pointed forward.

"Attack!"

Shinja stepped forward to receive Hary. She was the only one that could fight Hary Head on. Hary was a flying swords user, but Shinja's watertight defense had no flaws he could exploit. Shinja had already opened her Spiritual Energy Meridians as well. Her soul power and talent had been higher than his to start with, although she began to cultivate the Myriad Energies Technique after Ao. She finished creating all nine pseudo energy meridians, almost at the same time as him with her Pure Yin Body, Soul Technique, and the help of her Spiritual Weapon. Putting all those together, she could jump four stages and hold Hary Back.

As for Ao, he disappeared from where he was. Huse, who was very confident a second ago due to his 9th stage Foundation Establishment cultivation, was taken by surprise! Ao, who was moving in his direction, is by no means any slower than himself. In fact, he is definitely faster!

The two of them engaged in a battle straight away. Huse immediately understood that he was weaker than this 7th-stage Foundation Establishment guy, so he immediately took out a Spiritual Energy Burning pill and swallowed it without thinking twice!

This is one of the alchemist's pills, which can only be used in emergencies. It will increase the Spiritual Energy usage rate several times and provide a great boost in the cultivator's combat prowess for some time. However, it also had its side-effects. After the effect is over, the cultivator would be in a weakened state for several days. If the side-effects aren't treated in time, the foundation might be damaged forever, eliminating any hope of further breakthroughs. The only chance will be to destroy their own dantians or cores and start again from zero.

With the help of the pill, Huse was finally able to cope with Ao.

Lakin and Ruik were fighting one 6th Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator each. Thanks to the Spiritual Energy Meridians, they were having no problem in holding their ground.

On Yusa's side, she was holding back three of the Middle-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivators at the same time. She was also providing support to the demon beasts, who were at a disadvantage. She can also trash someone like Huse at her level if he didn't use that pill. Thus, it wasn't any big deal to be able to hold three middle stage guys while providing support.

The rest of the demon beasts were using their higher numbers to hold back the rest of the enemies, with Yusa providing support every time things went south. They were, actually, the ones taking the least of the burdens.

Yusa looked around and kept everything inside her Divine Sense. Although she could be said to be the key behind their defense, she knew that battle and the others' didn't matter much anymore. There was only one battle, which really mattered at the moment. Surprisingly, it was Shinja's Core Formation Level Battle, but Ao vs. Huse battle.

Huse had consumed a pill that further increased his battle prowess. She knew such a pill had a time limit and huge side-effects. As long as Ao defeat Huse, or the pill's effect ends, the Core Formation guy fighting Shinja in the skies will be forced to retreat. Otherwise, his entire force will be wiped out. The problem is that there is no way he hasn't noticed that problem. So, what does he plan to do about this situation?

Yusa didn't need to have Krune's IQ to understand Hary's next step. At that moment, a runestone formation appeared in her hands. It was consistently being charged with her spiritual energy. No one noticed the Runestone and… the smile on her face.

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Read Is that a Wisp? Chapter 71 Krune's Team Members Determination! online for free - AllNovelFull

Yusa was right. Hary was concerned with Ao's and Huse's fight. Once Huse loses, or the effect of the pill wears out, Ao will be free to slaughter the other members of his group. They are on a stalemate against their enemies. It is evident that even after eating such a pill, Huse was still on the losing side, barely holding himself.

As for his Battle with Shinja, he has somewhat the advantage. The difference in cultivation is very high, after all. If Shinja didn't open her Spiritual Energy Meridians and used her Pure Yin Body power and the Soul Technique, she wouldn't be able to hold Hary. This made Hary even more determined to kill. Someone with a talent like that must have a very profound background, something that his Cout Clan probably can't mess with.

He used his Divine Sense to look around and find an opportunity to attack those bellows. At the moment, he had two options: to kill Ao so that his son would be freed, which helps finish the battle, or to attack Yusa, who is keeping the balance. The key to the battle was the victory between Ao and Huse. If he kills Yusa, the others will be able to support Huse to finish Ao in that case.

Shinja knew that and was doing her best to keep Hary at bay. But it was then that she received a Divine Sense message from Yusa. She was extremely surprised by what she heard, but it didn't show on her face. Her battle with Hary continued as if nothing had happened.

Below, Ao also received a Divine Sense message from Yusa, and a faint smile appeared on his face. He was also taken aback by what he heard. He immediately intensified his assault after that. It would use more spiritual energy, but that was the time to go all out.

On the skies, Hary noticed the change in the battle between Ao and Huse and got alarmed. He also intensified his attacks on Shinja and was finally able to open a flaw to send an attack below. Shinja looked alarmed and tried to stop him.

"Too late!"

Hary used a flying sword which passed by the flaw in Shinja's attack, flying straight at Ao's back. The sword speed wasn't something a Foundation Establishment like Ao could dodge. Hary was sure it was going to hit him. After that, this battle victory would be theirs. But it was this moment he noticed a cold smile appearing on Shinja's face. A sense of foreboding immediately assaulted his senses, but it was too late to stop the attack.

Down below, the sword was already right behind Ao. It didn't show any mercy and passed right through him. A scream could be heard, and a body fell to the ground. When Hary noticed who had been hit, his face warped into a rage. The one who was pierced wasn't Ao, but his son, Huse! He finally understood everything. That flaw appearing on Shinja's defense was intentional. They were planning to use his own attack to finish Huse off from the very start. How did they do that?

The reason was the Runestone Formation Yusa was charging since the start of the battle, an illusion formation. Its grade was Four Stars. It was something quite expensive, too, not to mention Yusa hasn't had the skills to craft one of those yet. What surprised Ao and Shinja wasn't the fact she had the Runestone, but that it was something very expensive. A Runestone tricking the senses of a Core Formation Realm cultivator wasn't something that could be bought without using Rank-Four Spirit Stones at the very least!

And they were right! There is no way Yusa would ever pay for something like that. It was her shamelessness that helped her obtain it from the Runestone Formations Guild, during the exam for new recruits of the guild. Yusa had enraged the examiner. In the end, they made a bet with the Yusa's victory. This Runestone was the payment. One must first kill Yusa before asking her to pay for something this expensive. Of course, she was not going to tell them that.

Surprisingly, Huse didn't die! This was the key-point of this scheme. Everyone's already noticed that their enemies are all from the same clan. It was even more evident if one looked at the Father's and Son's faces, which were quite similar. If the Father wanted to save his son, he would need to retreat. Ao was now free, so he immediately charged at the other enemies. The battle became one-sided. Hary might have the advantage in his battle with Shinja. There is no way he can finish her off anytime soon. By that time, all his forces will be wiped out, not to mention that his son was still alive. If he is fast, he might be able to save him.

"Retreat!"

Hary gathered a lot of spiritual energy and attacked Shinja. She knew what he wanted to do and didn't try to stop him, she just dodged and appeared beside her companions. Hary took Huse's body and charged out, everyone else heard the order and also retreated from this place. Shinja then said to not pursue anyone. Finally, the battle was over.

When the enemies left Shinja's Divine Sense range, her face immediately got pale, and she vomited some blood. She was definitely the one who got the greatest burden. Battling a cultivator four states higher than herself for so long was a great burden on her body. She kept using her Pure Yin Body's power all the time to enhance her control over the water element, which was no easy feat. If Hary had stayed some time longer, she would definitely fall in the end.

Yusa and the others looked at her concerned.

"Are you okay?"

Shinja nodded.

"I'm fine, I just need some days to recover. How were things on your side?"

Lakin came forward and shook his head. He had quite a few injuries on his body, but overall, he was fine.

"Although Ao could kill three of those middle-stage Foundation Establishment guys, our side lost quite a few demon beasts. They were just ordinary demon beasts to start with. They couldn't jump stages to fight those of a higher level. It was due to the higher numbers that we fended their attacks for so long."

Lakin sighed in the end. He had spent quite some time with those demon beasts, so he got somewhat attached to them. Ruik saw that and simply commented.

"We are demon beasts! Battle is part of our lives. Most of us aren't afraid of dying to start with. A few might have been gone, but those who survived will experience a great boost on their cultivation. Life and death struggles are what make us stronger."

Yusa then took out one of Krune's Three-Star Healing pills he had prepared a long time ago and given it to Shinja.

She didn't say anything and swallowed it. After that, her injuries and chaotic energy started to stabilize straight away. Shinja was surprised at that. She knew Krune was a Four-Star Alchemist, but she didn't expect his pills to be so effective.

"Forget what I said. With this, I should be able to recover in a day at most."

Ao looked in the direction their enemies retreated and asked.

"Do you think they will be back soon, or they will go back to gather more reinforcements?

Yusa wasn't preoccupied with that, but with another thing.

"They won't come back alone. That Core Formation Guy is a big problem because he doesn't need to go back to the city to ask for reinforcements. He can just go deeper into the Katiu Forest and ask the help of another Core Formation Demon Beast, which would definitely be much faster. Not to mention that whoever decided to help him would definitely be around his own power to guarantee the fairness of their agreement."

Shinja and Ao were taken aback. They hadn't thought about this possibility before.

"We can only hope that Krune finishes the formation as soon as possible. If things really get out of hand, we will need to abandon the wisps and flee. We can't simply die here either."

Lakin heard that but said nothing. Krune's team members had already helped a lot. He couldn't possibly ask them to give up their lives here. If anything, he was already very grateful for their help. They can't move the wisps away either. There are too many of them to hope that no one will notice. It would make things more complicated instead since they won't be able to protect them when the battle starts.

Exactly as Yusa thought, Hary healed his son until his condition became stable and told the others to protect him. As soon as he finished, he charged more profoundly into the Katiu Forest. He knew that if he waited to go back to the city and only then came back, his target would probably find a way to escape. He had to prevent that at all costs. As he was alone, he didn't have to wait for long. In just a few hours, he arrived at a hill. There was no cave, nest, or anything like that at sight, but he knew that this place was the lair of an Infernal Beetle, a third-stage Core Formation Realm Demon Insect.

Hary spread his Divine Sense and soon found his target, and sent a message over.

"Gory, it's me, Hary Cout, I need your help with something."

Immediately after, the ground started to move, and a hole appeared. From inside, one could see a red-colored beetle coming out. The beetle was quite big, no smaller than Hary himself. The beetle looked at Hary, and a moment later, it transformed into a middle-aged man.

"You know this isn't a place you should trespass lightly, what is it?"

Hary didn't mind the beetle's temper.

"I know that well. But something came up. Don't worry, it will be very beneficial for both of us. It will probably help you with your cultivation."

Gory's attention was picked. His foundation wasn't as poor as Harys. Still, he also used his own sheer amount of wisps and other cultivation resources in the past. Thus, normal resources had little effect on him now.

Hary didn't waste time, and except for Lakin's presence, he explained everything that had happened and what he was fighting for.

"Did you say you saw two 9th-stage Qi Condensation wisps? Are you sure?"

Hary nodded.

"There is no doubt about that! Not to mention that there is a lot more with lower-level cultivations."

Gory found it hard to believe. But when Hary got a blood contract out to prove his words, Gory could only accept the truth. After that, the two of them discussed how they should share the spoils. It didn't take long for them to reach an agreement and sign another blood contract.

After that, they immediately moved out. Time was of the essence! The previous battle definitely had caught the attention of the other beasts around. It wouldn't be long before another Core Formation Beast noticed that something was wrong. If that happened, they could say goodbye to their wisps.

Noticing how effective the healing pill was on Shinja, Ao took out his own and gave it to her. If Yusa's conjecture was right, Shinja couldn't be in a weakened state for long. Shinja also understood that and stayed quiet. She just took the pill and moved back into the Spiritual Vein Lake to recover. By now, she's already got back 80 to 90% of her power. She should be able to hold off for a while.

Outside, Yusa wasn't just waiting for the enemies to come. Runestone Formations used normal formations as a base, so she built a few common defensive formations. It wouldn't be able to do anything against Core Formation Experts. However, it should be able to hold back the Foundation Establishment ones for a while.

Ao had gathered the demon beasts and was explaining how to use a battle formation to them. He had tried to do that when he first arrived, but he hadn't had enough time to finish the preparations. So he could have only put that aside during the last battle. But this time, with fewer beasts taking part in the formation, he finally got it to barely work. He spent the next hours practicing with the demon beasts, using himself and the core of the battle formation. His combat prowess was boosted through the spiritual energy of the demon beasts.

Yusa wasn't the only one that tried to learn something new. Ao knew that he didn't like side occupations like alchemy or formations. He used some of his time to learn how to use battle formations, but he didn't expect that a situation where he needed it came sooner than he had thought.

Yusa and Ao were in the middle of their actions when they noticed Shinja coming out of the cave. She looked in the distance, and her face got cold again.

"They are coming! There are two Core Formation Realm cultivators this time, the second one is at the Third Stage."

Hearing that, Ao came forward. A look of determination could be seen on his face.

"Leave the 3rd stage one with me, I should be able to hold him for some time, as long as the battle formation doesn't crumble."

Yusa also came forward to say her piece.

"I finished setting up some simple protection formations. As long as the enemy isn't a Core Formation, I should be able to hold the rest of them with Lakin and Ruik's help."

Lakin and Ruik didn't complain about the setup. It was impressive they had a countermeasure against two Core Formation Realm cultivators.

Shinja looked at Lakin and said.

"If things go south, we will leave, and I will bring you out even if you don't want too. I can't let Krune's disciple die on my watch. I feel sorry for the wisps, but dying won't change anything, do you understand?"

Yusa and Ao also looked at him. Their opinion was the same as Shinja. Krune had done a lot for them, and they won't let him down here.

Lakin took a deep breath and nodded. He could only hope for the best.

Hary and Gory arrived shortly after. Hary looked at Shinja and said:

"Last chance! If you leave now, we won't pursue it. Although I'm angry, I can at least tell that my son only survived my attack because you planned to do so. On account of that, I can let bygones be bygones."

Shinja didn't say anything and took out her spiritual weapon. Her actions were her answer.

"Very well, Gory, I'm counting on you to finish things fast."

Gory didn't say anything and charged ahead. Immediately, the battle started.

No one noticed, but inside the Spiritual Vein Lake Cave Room, a certain Teleport Formation started to shine.

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Shinja once more got locked in a battle against Hary. Even though she hasn't fully recovered from the last encounter, thanks to Krune's pills, she got quite close to it. So she wouldn't have a problem holding Hary for a while.

On Ao's side, thanks to the boost of the battle formation provided by the demon beasts spiritual energy, he was able to fend off the Infernal Beetle for now. But he couldn't cause any big damage to it either. Fortunately, the same could be said for the beetle. The battle formation defense was airtight, and Ao made sure to cover any flaws that appeared due to this group's short time of practice.

Yusa's side was a little bit better. With no late-stage foundation establishment cultivators on the enemy side, she was able to heavily injure two of the enemies already and was slowly gaining ground. Grand part of this was because of the formations she built earlier and the help Lakin and Ruik provided. However, she knew things were very dire, in fact. Although Shinja looked fine on the surface, she knew the battle against Hary was extremely difficult. As far as she could see, Shinja couldn't cause any damage to him so far.

Hary was ecstatic because he noticed Shinja was beginning to lose efficiency. Although she was still holding him back, he could feel her battle strength was decreasing rapidly. Gory's side was also doing well; in the end, the Infernal Beetle cultivation is much higher than his enemies. It wouldn't take long before Gory achieved victory. The only downside was Yusa's, but he is confident his clan members would be able to hold them long enough for him and Gory to finish their sides.

Shinja finally showed a flaw, and Hary's Flying sword left a deep cut on her waist, which forced her to show another opening Hary used to kick her. Shinja was sent flying and hit the ground below. Hary used this chance to send his Flying sword over, but he was impressed to see that Ao was able to send an attack over in the last second. Although it did almost nothing to his flying sword, it still bought enough time for Shinja to react and avoid a fatal injury. Unfortunately, she was again hit by the sword, and more blood flowed out. She was approaching her limit.

Ao's attack had bought Shinja some time, but it wasn't without any cost. Gory used that chance to hit a flaw in his Battle formation. He killed two demon beasts at once. Although the formation didn't crumble, it lost a lot of its power. Ao also suffered a backlash from that attack and vomited some blood.

Yusa saw that and knew they couldn't hold on any longer. Just as she was about to send a Divine Sense message for them to retreat, she heard another Divine Sense message coming from the Spiritual Vein Lake Cave. Krune had finally arrived and, thanks to the wisps inside the cave, he understood the situation straight away. Unfortunately, he can't send the wisps over yet. There is no one of their team at the Solie Clan or the Harta City to help conceal them. If he wants to save the-wisps, he must win this battle first.

There was only one chance of doing that. It was through his Tribulation Lightning, but he can't show his card that easily. He can only use it once and, after that, he will need a lot of time to recover its power. He decided to use it to deal with the strongest enemy, Hary. Krune then sent a Divine Sense message to the others, telling them not to alarm the enemies of his presence. Shinja, Ao, and the others heard that and were ecstatic. They complied with his request and pretended that nothing happened. Krune, then, silently joined the battle with Yusa. He was only showing the battle power of an ordinary 6th-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Hary and Gory noticed him but didn't pay any attention. With the combat power that Krune showed, he wouldn't be able to change the battle's flow.

The reason Krune appeared was that he wouldn't be able to accumulate the power of the Tribulation Lightning above in the sky without being noticed. Fortunately, he really is at the 6th stage of the Foundation Establishment. All he had to do was to pretend his combat power was really of an ordinary cultivator at this level. After noticing that Hary and Gory ignored him, he finally was able to silently accumulate the power of the Tribulation Lightning high in the sky.

Krune might not be using a lot of strength. He was still sweating all over. He has only one chance; if it fails, they will only be able to flee, and it isn't guaranteed everyone would survive the retreat.

Finally, he charged all the Tribulation Power he had available and waited for the right opportunity. He sent a Divine Sense to Shinja, asking to find a way to make Hary pay attention to her. She knew it was the crucial moment of this battle. Then, she waited again for an opportunity and showed another flaw. Hary immediately took this chance and charged forward.

Krune saw that, and his eyes lit up. He then commanded on his mind.

"Heavens Fall!"

But it was at this moment that Hary felt something was not right. He had already fallen for a flaw trick. He felt this one was very similar to the last.

Hary had focused on his Divine Sense when, suddenly, he saw a scene that made his heart almost stop. Right above him, an enormous Tribulation Lightning was falling down straight at him! He immediately ceased his attack and focused all the power of his body to dodge the attack. The lightning brush past him as a light flash. He could even feel his skin burning a little due to the proximity of the attack. Hary felt a chill on his back, just an instant later, and he would be done for.

Krune saw that and sighed. He has lost any hope of achieving victory in this battle.

'It's over, I missed.'

Suddenly, just as he was about to send a Divine Sense message to have everyone retreat, he heard a voice coming from his mind.

"Missed? Ha! I refuse to believe anyone in this world can dodge my power!"

Right after hearing that, something unbelievable happened, making everyone's eyes almost pop out of their sockets. That Tribulation Lightning, which had just passed by Hary's side…, made a turn back! It once again charged straight at Hary.

Hary saw that and was alarmed! Since when can Tribulation Lightning make curves? Of course, if he were present on the day Shinja broke through into the Core Formation Realm, he wouldn't think like that. Unfortunately for him, what happened that day was kept as a secret inside the Mercenary Guild.

Hary once again tried to dodge, but this time, Krune used a Divine Sense attack to assault Hary's soul. Due to the difference of cultivation between him and Hary, this attack couldn't do much more than stopping Hary for an instant. But that was all Krune needed. Hary didn't have time to put up any kind of defense, and the Tribulation Lightning struck him head-on!

BOOM!

The Tribulation Lightning exploded with power inside Hary's body, worse than that because Hary was in the sky. The power of the lightning had nowhere to go. It then created havoc inside his body, destroying the majority of his meridians and crippling his dantian. By the time the power of the lightning finally dissipated, Hary had already been burnt to the point he looked charcoal.

Hary's body plummeted from the skies and hit the ground. The battle, which was so intense just a second ago, had totally stopped. It was so silent that one could hear their own breaths.

Everyone focused their Divine Senses on Hary's body, and, surprisingly, they noticed he was still alive! Of course, he was in no condition of causing any problems anymore.

Krune saw that and let out a sigh of relief. But then he remembered that voice that had appeared in his mind. Now he is absolutely sure, he wasn't hallucinating during the first time he heard it. The tribulation lightning lingering in his soul really had a sentience of its own!

But now, it wasn't the time to care about that. Krune sent a message to Shinja and asked her to talk things over. The enemy still had one Core Formation Expert, and his group was in no shape to continue battling. Understanding what Krune meant, Shinja came forward to deal with the aftermath.

"Your friend there can't fight anymore. We don't wish to have a battle to the death in this place, either. If we really did that, although I'm confident of our victory, we would lose a lot of our friends. If you decided to throw caution to the wind, we weren't giving you any wisp. The question is: whether you want to die here or leave with just some injuries. It is up to you."

Gory heard that and reverted to his human form. As a Demon Insect who preferred to live in the Danger Zone, he cared little about people knowing about his human face or not. He then looked at Hary and sighed. He could be said to be an acquaintance of Hary. They have known each other for over a hundred years! Not to mention that Shinja's words weren't wrong, with Hary out of the picture, he had very little hope of achieving anything in this place. He decided he would first retreat with Hary and then gather more forces to come and take the wisps away. He hasn't given up yet on those 9th- stage wisps, which could possibly allow him to break through into the next stage.

"Very well, you, lot of the Cout clan, we are leaving."

Gory took Hary's body, and, together with the remaining members of the Cout Clan, he left straight away.

How could Shinja and the others not notice what he was planning? But that was fine. They just need a few minutes, and everything will be over. Krune looked at everyone and said:

"Alright, we are teleporting all the wisps straight away. I've already tested the teleport formations on the way here. So everything is fine."

Krune then looked at the demon beasts, bound by the contract to protect the cave, and, later, at Lakin. His disciple noticed what he meant and came forward to talk.

"We are leaving the Katiu Forest for a very long time, maybe even forever. So, according to our contract, the wisps you should protect aren't going to be here anymore. So you are now free to do whatever you want. I believe, with your experiences today, your cultivations will soar in the future. Our relationship is over here!"

Hearing that, the majority of the beasts left straight away. Being free of the blood contract bindings was the best news they heard today. They got a lot to digest from today's battle as well, not to mention those guys would definitely come back later with even more forces. Staying here would be suicide!

Lakin looked as demon beast after demon beast left one after another, but three demon beasts stayed. Lakin looked puzzled at them.

Krune also saw that but didn't say anything. Lakin was the one who gathered those guys, and whether he decides to take them in or kick them away, it is his problem!

Krune went back to the Spiritual Vein lake. Before activating the teleport formation, he took out a few Healing Pills he had been keeping for situations like that. He looked at the state Shinja and the others looked like, but didn't say anything. Between real friends, no words were necessary. He just carved today's events in his heart.

While Yusa and the others were recovering, Lakin appeared inside the Spiritual Vein Lake Room. Behind him, one could see those three demon beasts from before.

Krune laughed at that sight.

"Are those your new friends?"

Lakin and those demons seemed a little at a loss with that question.

"I guess you could say that."

There wasn't even a need to mention the Lizard Dragons. They obviously were there as well.

Slowly, Yusa and the others stood up. They didn't have time to waste here. After all, Krune explained how he set up the formation at the Raskie Danger Zone. There is also a Concealing formation to hide their presence once they get there.

"Alright, we need one person in each formation. Yusa has the Concealing Runestone Formations, one for the Solie Clan Formation, and the other for the Harta City Formation. The one in the Raskie Danger Zone has already had one, as I said. Ao will stay in the Solie Clan, and Yusa will check the Harta City's. As Shinja has the highest cultivation, she takes care of the Raskie Danger Zone. She can simply scare away any beast that approaches the formation. I will stay behind to send everyone. Any question?"

Everyone shook their heads.

"Very well, time is of the essence. Let's go!"

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Krune's team members were the first to leave. They would need a few minutes to get ready on the other sides. After all, the teleport formation couldn't send too many wisps at once. Krune had discussed with them, and they agreed everything should be ready in at most fifteen minutes. After the time was gone, Krune sent the first batch of wisps over.

"There they go! We are sending one batch every two minutes; it should take at most one hour for us to leave. That Infernal Beetle will definitely need much more than one hour to gather enough cultivators or demon beasts to come over. So, no need to hurry!"

One by one, batch by batch, the wisps were being teleported over. As Krune didn't receive anything back from the teleport formation, everything was going as planned. Around one hour later, the last batch of wisps was gone. Lakin took special attention to this one because Cassy and Dier were on them.

"Master, it's our time then."

Krune nodded. He stepped on the teleport formation with Lakin, Ruik, and the demon beasts; the Lizard Dragons were in this last batch too. Before activating the teleport formation, Krune summoned a fireball and made its internal spiritual energy run chaotic. It would definitely explode in the next few seconds. He then stepped right above the formation and activated it. In a flash of silver light, Krune and the others were gone, and right after that, the fireball exploded. The Short Distance Teleport Formation was gone.

Around four hours later, Gory had gathered enough forces to trash Krune's group. He arrived back at the Spiritual Vein Lake Cave and asked the demon beasts he had left around about what had happened during the time he was out.

"Our group had kept a look at the mountain range. No one had left it in the last few hours, that's for sure."

Gory found it weird. How could they not try to escape? He had left some scouts behind. Exactly, for this reason, there would be no way for them to get far away with those many wisps unless they escaped alone and left the wisps behind. But after defending those wisps with so much intensity, it would be strange if they simply decided to give up on them. At least, they should have let those wisps scatter in all directions so that they would have some chance of living.

Gory didn't waste time. He had gathered another two Core Formation Realm Demon beasts, sure about his victory this time. They immediately charged in the cave direction. However, when their Divine Senses finally got close enough to see what was happening inside, their faces darkened.

"How come there is no one?"

Gory didn't believe it and charged inside. After arriving at the spiritual vein lake, he finally understood what had happened. He couldn't help but kick a nearby boulder, which immediately crumbled.

"Those guys had a teleport formation prepared!"

The other two demon beasts looked at Gory coldly.

"What? Can't you see the remnants of the teleport formation? If you were in my place, would you have considered having a Four Stars Formations Master in their group capable of building teleport formations?"

The Core Formation Realm beasts ignored him and left. Now that the group used a teleport formation, there is no way to find where they have gone. They can only go back and order their subordinates to see if they had teleported somewhere close. But they also know it is very hard to be the case.

Gory was also feeling gloomy. He could spread the information, but it would ultimately bring him no results and raise a lot of problems, so he only sighed and left as well.

Back at the Raskie Danger Zone, Krune's group arrived at the entrance of the Rainbow Sect. They had to move slowly to keep the concealment. Thanks to Shinja flying around and scaring the demon beasts with her aura, Krune, and the others didn't get in any trouble on their way here. It was not like Krune built this Short Distance Teleport formation far away from the elemental gate anyway.

Krune used his authority as Legacy Disciple to open the gate. After that, everyone got in. Hasik, who was taking care of everything as always, was surprised when he saw the number of wisps passing through the gate. Shortly after, a few demon beasts together with Krune and the others entered as well. Hasik then waited for Krune to come to explain what was happening.

After arriving at the inner city, Krune left the wisps for Lakin to take care and went to the Order Hall. There, he could see Hasik was already waiting for him.

"Well, that's a lot of wisps, but I should advise you: using wisps for cultivation has many side-effects and will make your foundation poorer. You should think twice before using them for cultivation."

Krune's mood got gloomy straight away. In the end, it's not easy to change people's opinions about wisps! He then explained that his group would never use a wisp for cultivation. He brought them here to protect their lives.

"Hum? What will you get from saving a few wisps lives? They have a very limited life span. So there isn't much they will be able to do for you, you know?"

Krune thought that it would be better than explaining. The best would be to show him straight away. Krune, then, reverted back to his wisp form, which was bigger than the wisps outside. Hasik saw that and was alarmed.

"Yo-You! You are a wisp too!"

Krune then went back to his human form again.

"Exactly! So you don't need to be afraid that I or anyone here will use the wisps as cultivation resources. I will slaughter anyone who dares to try so."

Hasik was taken aback. He hadn't expected that at all. The best disciple his Sect had found in a few millennia turned out to be a wisp. Doesn't it mean Krune doesn't have much to live to start with?

Hasik looked at Krune and let out a sigh. His hope for the Sect got crushed just like that. But then he remembered Shinja, Ao, and Yusa were all normal humans. Although they aren't as talented as Krune, they are still top geniuses. His mood improved a bit after thinking like that.

As Krune could not understand what Hasik was thinking, he didn't care. After becoming a Legacy Disciple, Krune had read all the Sect's rules. The Sect doesn't stop any race from joining, as long as one has passed the tests and became an ordinary disciple. The Sect won't do anything to harm that disciple, let alone a legacy disciple like him. That's also why he didn't mind showing his true form.

"Alright, you shouldn't feel that sad anyway! I still have around 14 years of life ahead of me. My cultivation speed is more than fast enough to reach the Core Formation Realm! And don't forget, I'm a 'Rainbow Core' cultivator, remember?"

The words 'Rainbow Core' didn't ring any bell in Hasik's mind.

"I know you have a rainbow core. You told me about that before. Is there anything special about it"?

It was as Krune expected. Hasik really didn't know about the rarity of the Rainbow Core. Otherwise, he would have said something that day when Krune told him about that. But he didn't enter in detail last time. He only commented about the Tribulation Lightning but left the properties of the Rainbow Core basically out. It was then he thought about another possibility.

'Maybe the name they give to my Core isn't 'Rainbow Core' like the Mercenary Guild Head put.'

Krune then explained what his 'Rainbow Core' is. Only after hearing the details did Hasik's face finally change; he seemed to be in a rage.

"To hell with Rainbow Core! That's obviously an Elemental Core. Who the heck came up with this name?"

Hasik felt like he was blind.

"I'm also an idiot! How come I didn't notice it before? The clues were all out there for me to see. Maybe it's because it is so rare I didn't consider the possibility of an Elemental core appearing here."

Krune was ecstatic. It seems Hasik knows more about his Rainbow Core.

"To think that a wisp would give birth to an Elemental core! What a waste!"

Krune didn't mind that comment. He had long since got used to the little expectations everyone had for wisps. Hasik shook his head and then continued.

"The elemental core is one of the ten major cores. It's extremely rare

and can give birth to the Elemental Divine Soul. You called it Five Elements Divine Soul. It's not incorrect to think like that! They were right at this point. You will really have an easier time understanding the elemental laws in the future."

Krune got curious.

"Ten major cores?"

Hasik nodded.

"They are the Elemental core, Black Hole core, Yin core, Yang core, Destiny core, Death core, Life core, Space core, Time core, and the most mysterious of all, the Heavenly Core. They all can nurture their respective nascent souls."

Hasik seemed to be lost in thought while talking about it.

"As for the conditions that give birth to those cores, no one knows. Several powers tried to find a way to raise cultivators with those cores, but they all failed. In the end, they got to the conclusion that it doesn't matter where or when those cores were born. They only appear for the fated ones."

He then continued.

"The Back Hole core is the one with the fastest cultivation of all cores. There is no such thing as a bottleneck. It is also a strange one; once a cultivator gives birth to it, it doesn't matter what kind of foundation they built.

"Yin core can control the Yin elements to the best capability. In places where Yin energy is abundant, their cultivation speed and combat prowess are at the top."

"Yang core obviously can control Yang Elements! So it's basically the opposite of the Yin Core."

"Destiny core is the best for divination. As long as you have the necessary materials for study, everyone can do divination. But no one can match those who give birth to this core, not to mention that they have fewer chances of getting a backlash when prying into the secrets of the heavens."

"Death core can control death power. They are especially strong in huge battlefields where death reigns supreme. You can even say they are the gods of war. Of course, they are still very strong even if no people are dying around."

"Life core has the power to obviously control life. They are the best for healing techniques, and those with this core are usually called saints."

"Space core has the best control over space. Its spatial skills are unmatched at the same level.".

"Time core is quite a weird one. It might be a blessing or a disaster. It makes it easier for the cultivator to understand the time laws. But before reaching the Void Breaking Realm, the owner of this core can't control the power of time of his core. So they might age so fast that they have no chance to reach that realm."

"As for your elemental core, it should be very obvious to you! You have control over the elements that almost no one can match. You would only lose for those with a core like the Yin or Yang core. But they can only surpass you in their respective elements. You could say you have an all-rounded core in this case."

"As for the Heavenly core, that one has appeared the least number of times. Few have witnessed the power of a cultivator who gave birth to this core. Some say that all the other nine cores can ultimately become a Heavenly core, but no one knows, for sure. It is said that those with a Heavenly core can control the power of the heavens!"

Krune and the others were amazed to think there are so many powerful cores out there. It was then that he thought about one thing.

"Shinja has a Pure Yin Body. Does it mean she has a Yin core?"

Hasik wasn't surprised by that question. He already knew about Shinja's body, but he just shook his head.

"You are greatly underestimating the rarity of the ten major cores, compared to the Yin core. Pure Yin Bodies could only be called ordinaries. It's even easier to find a man with a Pure Yin Body than a cultivator with a Yin core. She could find if she had a Yin core in a second. Just ask her to check if her core is azure-colored or golden."

Shinja wasn't sad by hearing that. She knew that her core was as golden as it could be. It didn't seem it had anything special about it either. Krune finally came to understand how incredible his core was.

It was then that Krune remembered his Tribulation Lightning in his core.

"Hasik, do you remember that I can control the Tribulation Lightning and that it is mainly inside of my Rainbow Core? Does it mean that I have a Heavenly Core?"

Hasik shook his head.

"There is no doubt the Tribulation Lightning is part of the power of the heavens, but the heavens aren't just the Tribulation Lightning alone, so it can't be called a Heavenly Core, but-"

Hasik took a deep look at Krune before he continued.

"If what they say that all nine major cores can become a Heavenly core, then the Tribulation Lightning inside your core might give you the chance to achieve that, alas…"

Krune finished Hasik's words.

"Alas, I'm a wisp. Is that what you want to say?"

Hasik just sighed and didn't say anything else.

"Hmph! You just wait and see."

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After a few days, all the wisps and demon beasts had been allocated around the inner city. With Krune's authority as Legacy Disciple, he could open a few training rooms and fields for everyone to use after everything was set. He decided he would once again immerse himself in cultivation and soul technique training. He doesn't have enough Spirit Stones to open the ninth meridian; thus, that was the best he could do at the moment.

But before that, there was another matter he had to take care of. Krune had closed the door of his room and sat on his bed. He was concentrated on his mind and looked for that speaking Tribulation Lightning.

"Come out! I know you are there. Don't pretend you don't exist after what you did."

After some moments of silence, Krune finally heard an answer.

"Who is pretending not to exist? It was because I used all my power that I had to sleep for a while. In fact, I should be sleeping at the moment too. Because of your mistake, I was forced to intervene and send the lightning back at that ant."

Krune took a deep breath.

"So, what exactly are you? Are you the heavens?"

The voice heard that and burst in laugh.

"Heavens? Me? You must be joking! The thing you call heavens can go to hell for all I care."

Krune was alarmed with that information.

"Heavens go to hell? Does it mean that the Tribulation Lightning isn't the power of the Heavens?"

"Half right and half wrong. The power that triggers the Tribulation Lightning does indeed come from the thing you call heavens. But its concept was learned because of me."

Krune thought it was too much information for him to take.

"In that case, what exactly are you?"

The voice was about to answer when, suddenly, Krune's eight Spiritual Energy Meridians appeared and started to shine again. Krune was taken aback. It had never happened before. They only shined once he created a new one. After a few moments, the shining stopped, and Krune regained the control over them.

"The hell? What happened?"

The entity controlling the voice in his head was silent. Krune didn't know what had happened. It was a warning. A warning directed at himself, telling him that he'd already spoken too much. The voice remembered the aura that came out of the meridians, an aura no weaker than his own.

Krune examined his Spiritual Energy Meridians a little more but didn't find anything strange. He really couldn't understand what had happened. After some time, Krune finally gave up and asked the Tribulation Lightning inside his soul.

"Was it you?"

The voice answered back.

"No, I have nothing to do with what had happened."

Krune found it fishy, but there was nothing he could do if the Tribulation Lightning didn't want to answer. So he went back to the previous topic.

"Anyway, you haven't told me what you are yet."

The voice simply said.

"That's not important for you at the moment. There are a lot of things that better for you not to know if you don't have the power to change anything."

Krune was taken aback with that answer. He still has loads of questions, and he kept asking, but the voice refused to answer even a single one.

"I'm not doing it because I don't like you, but because it really is no good for your future development to know about them now."

Krune was still unconvinced, but, since the voice didn't want to answer, there was nothing he could do.

"In that case, why are you in my soul?"

The voice answered.

"I'm not exactly in your soul. I'm still inside your Elemental Core. I'm simply using the link between the Tribulation Lightning in your soul and me to talk to you."

Krune was feeling gloomy. He only understood that he understands nothing.

"Then, why me?"

The voice once again burst in laugh.

"Coincidence! I have been trying to get free for who knows how many years. It just happens you were there in the right place at the right time."

Krune was speechless. Was it that simple?

"Errr… then, when are you leaving? You can't possibly live inside my Elemental Core forever, right?"

"I can't leave for now since I will be found out. That time, when you got hit by another person's Tribulation Lightning, it was basically because that thing you call heavens had instinctively noticed my presence. So it attacked. If I leave now, I will be struck to death."

Krune was starting to feel like kicking this guy out by force, but then he remembered he had no idea how to do that.

"Anyway, do you have a name?"

The voice answered straight away.

"You can simply call me The Most Supreme Tribulation Lightning."

Krune's mouth twitched when he heard that.

"Alright, from now on, you are little light."

'Little light' was taken aback.

"Who the hell is little light?"

Krune ignored him and made the next question.

"There is no such thing as free lunch in this world. In that case, what can you do for me?"

Little light was still angry with that name, but then it reminded itself of its status. It was beneath itself to discuss such things with a weakling like Krune.

"I won't bicker with you about that name. As for what I can do for you, I've already done plenty. Who you think saved the life of your friends just a few days ago?"

Krune went silent at that moment. Little light wasn't wrong. It was really thanks to him that Krune was able to avoid disaster back in the Katiu Forest. Little light noticed Krune went silent and then continued.

"Besides, don't expect me to give you techniques, show you places with treasures or anything like that. I simply don't have them. Such things had long lost any meaning for me. So I don't even know where to start anymore. What I can do is what I've been doing so far: to help you temper your soul and give timely help when an emergency appears, that's all."

Krune sighed then decided to leave it at that. It doesn't change the fact that little light had truly helped him a lot already. He decided that he would simply treat little light the same way as before, like air.

"Very well, but when the time comes, I want you to tell me what I want to know."

Little light agreed with that request.

"For now, you just need to do the same thing as always. Feed your Elemental Core with the lightning element so that I can recover. Once I get strong enough, I will leave on my own. Besides, it's not like you are on the losing end here."

Krune agreed with that statement. He had got a lot from the power of the Tribulation Lightning, especially his soul and Divine Sense.

"Another thing. Don't comment about me to anyone. Although I don't think someone could recognize me, if, by any chance, I'm found out, your future won't be any good. But you can still use the Power of the Tribulation Lightning. You definitely aren't the first to be able to store it."

After that, little light's voice disappeared. Krune understood it went to sleep again. Who knows when it would wake up!

Back at the cave in that desolate planet, the old man, who had been watching Krune so far, couldn't help but sigh.

"To think he would get that thing. I wonder if it was just a coincidence or destiny."

He then just shook his head.

"Anyway, that thing should have understood my message. It will also provide quite some help to it in the future, and I hope it's the right decision to not eliminate it."

He once again closed his eyes, and the cave returned to silence.

After the conversation with little light, Krune went back to do his own things. Soul Technique trained during the day and cultivation at night. He didn't neglect his skills training either. Since he decided to focus less on his side occupations, for now, he wants to break through into the 7th Stage before the Mercenary Selection.

Yusa and Ao went back to the soul endurance test. As they were close to finishing it, they decided to stop only when they finish the last level. Of course, they can't simply throw themselves at it. They will need to rest their souls before they get injured, so they used that time to cultivate instead.

Shinja had already finished the soul endurance test and got her spirit stones. She had also opened her Spiritual Energy meridians. It has been a little time since she entered the Core Formation Realm, so she decided to focus on her Soul Technique. For now, she also wants to pass the Legacy Disciple test later on.

Lakin and Ruik were also cultivating. They were in the same situation as everyone else. They didn't have enough spirit stones to open more Spiritual Energy Meridians, so they also started to take the Soul Endurance test. Krune had already explained to them that the best thing they could do was to be sure not to agree with the test ending before they could resist all the ten levels.

As for all the demon beasts that joined their group, they were all doing their own things. Krune asked them whether they wanted to cultivate on their own or get the techniques from his side. Those choosing his side would need to sign a blood contract not to spread the technique without permission. In the end, all of them decided to sign the contract. After all, Ruik is also a demon beast, and with his combat power and cultivation speed right in front of them, how could they not want to try that?

Finally, for the wisps that came, they all ended up choosing to cultivate the Myriad Energies Technique as well. Their case wasn't like the demon beasts. They simply had no other choice than doing that. Wisps don't have natural meridians, so any other technique is useless for them.

Time passed, and another few months went by. The Mercenary Selection was just two months away now. Krune'd already broken through the 7th Stage of the Foundation Establishment and was steadily approaching the 8th. To make sure that his foundation wouldn't be unstable anymore, he made sure to cultivate slower than before. Otherwise, he definitely would have reached the 8th Stage by now. He was just about to start another night of cultivation when he received a message from Lakin.

"Master, Cassy is going to try to break through into the Foundation Establishment today. Can you come to check it up?"

Krune was surprised by that. Cassy and Dier had been at the peak of the 9th Stage of the Qi Condensation Realm for a while. But they were taking their time to choose a Foundation, so they haven't made a breakthrough yet.

"Very well, I'm going now."

Krune left his room and disappeared in a flash of lightning. Krune hasn't been just cultivating all that time. He also tried many different uses with his skills. He came to understand that lightning was a lot faster for instantaneous movement. At the same time, Wind was better for long distances. Since Cassy was close by, there was no need to use Wind.

After arriving in a big empty place, Cassy was already there with Lakin, Ruik, and Dier. There were also quite a few wisps and Demon Beasts around whom they were friends. Krune came to know quite a few of them during the past months as well.

Krune looked around and found out that Yusa, Shinja, and Ao were there for some reason. Cassy got quite well along with Shinja. In the past months, he often noticed the two of them talking. Cassy was very curious, so it usually was Cassy making questions and Shinja answering them. Krune then looked around and couldn't help but feel a little moved. When had wisps ever been this friendly with humans and demon beasts?

The fact was, at first, the demon beasts and wisps weren't interacting too much, with an exception for Ruik. Of course! But through Ruik's effort, they slowly came to change a few words with each other. When you live together with the other for so long, you will come to know them better, whether you want it or not.

Cassy noticed Krune arrived and came to compliment him.

"Ancestor, you are here."

Krune heard that and felt helpless. The one who came up with this idea of ancestor was none other than his disciple. He wanted to refuse it, but Shinja and the others thought it to be a good idea. Krune was the progenitor of the Myriad Energies Technique real form, or at least, it was true on the Makui Planet. So it wasn't totally wrong to address him like that since it wouldn't change anything in his life, and the wisps and demon beasts looked to like this way. He simply accepted in the end.

They have already decided who would be the leader and take care of the things other than Hasik. Hasik can only appear in illusory form in the Order Hall. They needed someone alive to appear when necessary. It turns out that Ruik was pushed over the position. At that time, Ruik felt like crying. He loves sleeping. Doesn't that mean that he will have less time to sleep now? He wanted to refuse, but Krune, as an excellent friend, painfully convinced him to accept the position. As for why Krune simply thought.

'If I let this guy be, he will sleep until the end of times.'

And so, Ruik got the undesired Rainbow Sect Leader position.

"Cassy, have you decided which foundation to build?"

Cassy answered straight away.

"Yes, in the end, what I understand the most is myself. Lakin had successfully built a wisp foundation, so I decided to follow his steps. In the future, I will be able to accompany him and find even more wisps. Who needs help."

Lakin heard that and got a little red. It was evident that he was happy hearing that.

"Very well! Remember that for us wisps, the process of breaking our inner core is extremely painful. So don't think about finishing things fast. Both for Lakin and me, it took us over a month to finish this process. But this is not all bad! Your soul will be tempered quite a lot of time. Just make sure only to finish the breakthrough when you are 100% sure that your wisp foundation is perfect. Our wisps only have one chance at Foundation Establishment. There is no other opportunity after that."

Cassy got serious. She's already known that, but it is still somewhat scary, succeed and gain another ten years of life span, fail, and die. Who wouldn't be scared?

Cassy moved into the center of the place. Underneath it, there was a Spirit Gathering Formation, a big one at that. The Rainbow Sect has already had a lot more spiritual energy than outside. With the help of the Spirit Gathering Formation, there was no need for spirit stones or demon cores, of course. To make sure that nothing would go wrong, Lakin still left a lot of spirit stones with Cassy for her to use if necessary.

Cassy focused her spiritual energy and attacked her core interior.

"Crack."

Immediately after that, Cassy screamed out of pain. Shinja was alarmed and was going to move and check her, but Krune stopped her before she could do that and shook his head.

"No one can help with this process! This is something she needs to overcome. Both Lakin and I know very well how painful it is. Remember, this first scream of pain is definitely not the last one."

Lakin was also glued in place, his hands closed into fists. He also wanted to charge over and help her. But as someone who underwent the same process before, he knows as well as his master that any external help will confuse Cassy, instead. She needs to feel this pain and understand on her own from where to go after this.

Cassy finally got a hold of herself. She had almost fainted just now, but she kept reminding herself that if she fainted, she would be dead for sure. After waiting for a little to get used to the pain, she once again attacked the interior of her core.

"Crack."

Another scream. This time even louder than before. Shinja was looking at that and gritted her teeth. Tears were flowing from her eyes, but she held herself back. She was determined to watch the process until the very end. Krune looked at that and just sighed. He then found a place to sit and started cultivating again. He knew that Cassy's screams would continue for a very long time.

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Crack by crack, time passed. It took over two days for Cassy to adapt to the pain. Shinja didn't do anything in the meantime. She just stayed there looking. She didn't cultivate or practice any skill. Krune wondered when those two had got that close, but that was a good thing. Lakin looked a lot more relaxed at that moment. Krune took a look at Cassy in the center and nodded his head.

"The worst part is over. The highest risk for our wisps is when we start. The first time we attack the core center is the most painful one. But once you go further, the pain will diminish. Of course, it's only the second day. No doubt, there is still a lot of pain in the soul. But now that she overcame the first two days, she should have no problem in finishing the process. You only need to wait for whether she succeeds in forming a foundation that can be accepted by the heavens or not."

Shinja heard that and just sighed, relieved. As long as there was no more danger of fainting, then that was good already.

Day by day went by. Krune and the others kept looking at Cassy once a while and went back to cultivate, train or cultivate their soul techniques. Shinja had also calmed down and taken her time to cultivate again, but she kept her Divine Sense locked at Cassy all the time. Divine Sense would only use a lot of spiritual energy if you kept it spread to its max range. But Cassy was just a few meters away from her, so she could keep it as long as she wished to.

Little light had been awoken for a long time already. It couldn't help Krune with cultivation techniques or anything like that. However, he still knew the power of the Tribulation Lightning better than anyone else. Krune finally found a good use for little light knowledge, which is how to use the best the Tribulation Lightning in his skills or Divine Sense.

"So, what do you think? Is it better to use my instantaneous lightning movement fused with some Tribulation Lightning or just use Tribulation Lightning directly?"

Little light pondered a bit and shook his head.

"It isn't a good idea to use only Tribulation Lightning for the movement. My power might not attack you anymore. But it is still extremely tyrannical if it is just once or twice. Then that's okay! But if you overuse it in your movement technique, your body definitely won't be able to hold for long. You should first find the best balance between the normal Lightning Element and Tribulation Lightning. Search for the exact point where your body can sustain the added power of my Tribulation lightning without sustaining any damage first. If you do that, it should also help to fortify your human form."

Krune nodded but then noticed one thing.

"You said my body should still be able to hold the burden once or twice if I use Tribulation Lightning only during it. It means that it can still be used that way. Is it okay if I try it once?"

"If it's only once, then there should be no problem. But remember that it will be quite painful after that. Make sure to take your time to recover as well."

Krune nodded and decided to try it out. He absorbed the Tribulation Lightning, circulated it around his body, and activated his instantaneous movement technique. And, with a flash of purple lightning, Krune disappeared from his spot. When he appeared again, he was more than 300 meters aging from her Divine Sense. She spread all the time to keep a look at Cassy and to guarantee that nothing would happen in the surroundings.

For this reason, she saw the moment he used his Lightning Movement. For a second, she thought she was hallucinating. But when she noticed it wasn't an illusion, her jaw dropped!

Fast!

Really fast!

'How is that possible? Even if I used all my power as a Core Formation Realm cultivator, I wouldn't be even half as fast as he was.'

She was about to ask Krune how he did that when she heard another scream. She immediately ignored Krune and looked at Cassy, but she noticed something wrong.

"Wait! Since when does Cassy have a man's voice?"

Wisps without a human body have a voice that can't be considered manly or womanly, if anything, it's quite neutral. Shinja had already noticed that while talking with other wisps. Since that's the case, who screamed just now?

Only then, she noticed the one who screamed was none other than Krune. She looked at that and didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Krune was rolling on the ground. His body had some sparks of lightning coming out of it. There was a burnt smell coming from it too. Quite a few spots of his body seemed to have been fried. Suddenly, it seemed he came out of a barbecue, and the meat was none other than himself.

"This thing is painful as hell!"

Little light heard that and just laughed.

"What do you think my power is? Were you expecting something as gentle as the water element? My power is the Tribulation Lightning. I wasn't lying when I said that it is extremely tyrannical. If not for the fact that my power didn't wish to really hurt your body, you would have become a fried wisp already."

Krune smiled bitterly, but he wasn't sad. The speed he moved just a moment ago was something that could definitely become a trump card. Of course, as long as he didn't lie down on the ground to scream out of pain right after using it.

When he finally stabilized his condition, he noticed everyone looking at him. Or at least, that was the case for those who had faces. But Krune could feel the wisps were looking at him too.

"Ancestor has quite a few weird ways of training."

"Shh, Ancestor fetishes aren't something for us to comment about."

Krune wanted to cry. Who the hell would have such fetishes!

"Cough, cough. This was the backlash of my movement technique. It's very fast, but it causes a lot of damage to the body. Don't mind me."

Krune could see their doubtful eyes but decided to leave. He focused on healing his body instead. Although he is used to pain, it doesn't mean that he likes it.

Shinja then sent him a Divine Sense message.

"How did you do that? Even I can't be that fast, and I can control lightning element too."

Krune just answered.

"That's because I used Tribulation Lightning instead of a common lightning element. But you can also see the side effects. It's not something I can use all the time."

Shinja was already expecting that.

"So it was really Tribulation Lightning. Don't you think you are risking too much by circulating it in your body? This is totally different than summon its power outside to use your Heavens Fall after all."

Krune laughed after hearing that. With little light in control, the Tribulation Lightning will not kill him unless he overdoes it. Of course, he couldn't tell her about little light's existence.

"Don't worry! My control over its power is already very good. I've been expecting this result. It looks like I got badly hurt. But these are all simple injuries; one day is more than enough to recover from it."

Shinja had no reason to doubt him since Krune is confident he can use it. Then she will just trust his words.

Time kept flowing. Lakin told Krune his wisp foundation took around one month and a half, so he believes Cassy will take around the same time. This would give Krune's group more than fifteen days before the Mercenary Selection. It was more than enough time to rush back to Harta City.

Finally, after 42 days, Krune and the other Foundation Establishment and higher cultivators felt the power of the heavens descending and entering Cassy's wisp body. The acknowledgment of the heavens started. It was a very fast process. Not long after, that power disappeared. Cassy was still there, and her core was shining like any other wisp core. It just increased a bit in size. Wisps also grow up when they advance a realm. It's just that it isn't much of a difference if compared with demon beasts.

Lakin and Shinja approached her after that to check if everything was okay, Krune did the same.

"Shinja, Lakin, Ancestor, I succeed!"

Lakin and Krune just laughed. They knew it was a success the moment the power of the heavens disappeared. Shinja simply embraced Cassy's core while crying out of happiness.

"Very good! It's great to see another Foundation Establishment wisp! We will show everyone our race isn't as weak as they think."

Hearing Krune's words made Cassy very happy. It was then that she remembered her name was something temporary. Although they all think her gender will be set as female, there is no way to be certain she would definitely be one. It was just a theory that gender would be decided according to their personalities, after all.

Cassy asked Shinja and the others to give her some space. She had already inquired before as to how to change into a human body. So she wanted to give it a try.

Shinja didn't know why Cassy had asked that, but she agreed anyway. Krune and Lakin had already had an idea, so they were also curious to see what the results of the transformation would be. Although it won't give a 100% certain conclusion, it will pretty much set it in stone.

Slowly, a body started to form. Like Lakin and Krune, the first time she transforms will take longer than the next transformations: body, limbs, head, hands, feet, in just a little while. Her body finally finished taking form. It turns out that they were right, Cassy really became a female wisp as they had expected.

Cassy is very young, even for a wisp, so her body looked like a 16- to 17-year-old little girl. It turns out she was quite lovely, totally on the cute side, of course. Compared with Shinja, who had a Pure Yin Body, Cassy was still quite off. It's just that there was a little problem, once again. Like Lakin and Krune, after the first transformation, she ended up naked!

Shinja was just about to rush over to cover Cassy's body when she noticed someone had a faster reaction than herself. It was no other than Krune. He took a robe out of his spatial ring and covered Cassy with it.

Not only Shinja, but even Ao and Yusa, who had been observing until now, were also surprised. Since when is Krune so thoughtful? But they soon noticed that it was just their imagination.

"When you are in your human form, make sure to use clothes. Humans are extremely annoyed about those things. I know it is a burden, but you will get used to it. Otherwise, Yusa and the others will start buzzing on your ears all the time."

The reason he gave Cassy clothes wasn't she was naked, but because he thinks that humans are annoyed when they see another human form naked. They just sighed. It was already a good improvement. Before, he would simply let her walking naked without saying anything at all.

"Thank you, Ancestor. They are quite uncomfortable, indeed. I have never used anything on my wisp body before. So it's quite a strange feeling."

Lakin had already come back to take a look. In fact, his reaction before was as fast as Krune's. But there was no way he could be faster than his master.

"Well then, let me give you a hand. You will definitely need it."

Except for Ruik and Krune, everyone was puzzled about what Lakin meant. It was then Cassy tried to give her first step when, suddenly, she fell on the ground. She only avoided hitting her head because Lakin held her in time. She tried to move her limbs to stand again, but they just moved around like headless snakes.

Ruik saw that burst in laugh.

"So she is the first female worm wisp. She is not the least bit better than the two of you back then."

Krune and Lakin heard that, and their faces got gloomy. Ruik just so happens to have been present when the two of them first got their human forms. He will totally remind them of those shameful moments of their lives until the day of their deaths.

"I wonder if I beat Ruik's two heads hard enough, will he forget about that?"

Lakin heard that and couldn't help but nod his head.

"Master, that's a splendid idea!"

And just like that, the Rainbow Sect Leader slept that night with his body hurting all over.

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Krune left Cassy for Lakin to take care and called his team members over.

"Cassy's issue is over. As you already know, the Mercenary Selection is just two weeks and some days away. We should return; otherwise, Guild Head Bary might go crazy. We told him we would stay out for some time, though, but just in case."

Yusa and the others nodded. Ao then thought about something.

"Shinja, have you already had a free pass to the Divine Path Sect entrance exam? You could stay here if you want, no?"

Shinja heard that and nodded.

"I also thought about it. But in the end, there isn't much of a difference whether I stay or not. I've already had my soul cultivation technique, and I can use it anywhere. I can also cultivate in any place I wish, so I will go to take a look."

They nodded and went back to prepare for their leaving the next day. Krune went to the Order Hall to tell Hasik he would stay some time out.

"I understand. So the place you are going to is full of top experts watching over, right?"

Krune nodded. The Heads of the other Mercenary Guilds of the different continents would be there too. Not to mention that they are going to the Martial gathering right after they finish selecting the people who are getting the Five Slots given to the Mercenary Guild. So it's bound to have even more experts there.

"Then, take this technique with you and make sure to master it before Selection starts."

Krune then saw a book appearing on the teleport formation in the Order Hal. After reading its name, he got surprised!

"Race Cover Technique"

"Is this technique something that helps conceal my true form?"

Hasik nodded.

"Although you are a wisp, you are still a Legacy Disciple of my old Mohie Sect. The sect will always protect its members, it doesn't matter which race they are from. It was thanks to rules like that our sect could become a superpower in the past. The people who joined our sect had a sense of belonging, which is a very powerful weapon for any sect."

Krune didn't mind the-wisp comment and thanked Hasik anyway.

"This technique can stop anyone below the Void Breaking Realm from seeing which race you are from. There shouldn't have anyone at this level for a planet like this one you described to me. In the future, when you venture outside this planet, you won't need to be afraid of showing your true form anymore. Only those with poor foundations and bleak futures would dare to use wisps for cultivation. Any other high-level cultivator wouldn't risk damaging their foundations for a short term increase in power."

"Of course, it is still better if you keep it hidden as a trump card. After all, you said your combat power is a lot higher in that form."

Krune nodded. It was true. His control over the elements is much higher when he doesn't need to circulate spiritual energy through his human body first. He might lose some defense, but he gains a lot of firepowers.

Krune was just about to leave when suddenly, Hasik made an unexpected question:

"By the way, what kind of weapon are you using at the moment?"

Krune looked back at Hasik.

"Weapon!? I've never used a weapon, to be honest, I'm a lot better at long-range attacks and movement skills, so I never thought about acquiring one."

Hasik was taken aback with that answer.

"Even if you are good at staying far away, there are weapons good for that style of battles. Have you never considered Flying Swords, Chakrams, or anything like that?"

It's not like that Krune hasn't thought about them before. It's just he felt they aren't exactly to his liking, and so he told Hasik.

"I see. But what is it that you don't like about the weapons?"

Krune pondered a bit. if there were a reason, then it could only be…

"Well, to be honest, I have never liked killing, unless it's absolutely necessary. I won't take any lives, I can count the number of living beings that died because of me, on my hands. You'd better know I have battled a lot already. Be it alone or with my team members. So I guess it's because those are killing weapons that I feel uncomfortable about using them."

Hasik found this wisp to be more and more strange. Of course, it's not like all the other cultivators are bloodthirst and love killing each other. But, usually, they wouldn't care about killing their enemies so that they could get rid of the problem as soon as possible. Everyone knows that it is much easier to kill than it is to disable someone.

"I'm not in the position to judge whether you are right or wrong. Maybe you can do what you do exactly because of that. But I still think you should choose something for emergencies."

It was then that Hasik thought about something.

"You said you don't like weapons since they are made to kill. Then, what about defensive spiritual artifacts?"

Krune was puzzled. So far, he only saw people using spiritual artifact weapons for killing, and he has never seen anyone using something for defense.

"What kind of defensive spiritual artifact?"

"That is up to you. It must be something you like. They say the best weapon is the one that suits you the best. Defensive artifacts are just the same. What kind of artifact would be the one you like the most? Think about it!"

Krune left the Order hall with that thought on his mind. Just what kind of artifact would be the best for himself!?

'It has to be something I can use both in human and wisp form. In that case, something like a big flying shield, perhaps ?'

Krune shook his head.

'Too big, hard to manipulate and can only defend one side. Maybe some kind of armor that can adapt to my wisp form?'

Krune shook his head again.

'Out of the question! I don't even know if an armor can transform to start with. Even if it's possible, it's not something I can acquire at my level. Otherwise, I would have seen someone using it already.'

It was then that Krune thought about something.

'My soul power and Divine Sense are stronger than anyone at my level. At least between the people I have seen so far, it definitely is so. In that case, why am I focusing on a single piece of equipment to start with?'

An idea started to form in Krune's mind.

'Maybe…'

Krune's eyes lit up immediately.

'I need to go to the Blacksmith Guild first to check if it is possible.'

It was then that Krune noticed he had already arrived in his room.

"Oh right, the Race Cover Technique! I need to practice it straight away. I hope it isn't too hard to understand."

Krune then forgot about the artifact issue for the moment. He decided he would check about it when he was back in the city and went to the Blacksmiths Guild.

He then opened the book and started reading its contents. Surprisingly, there wasn't much there. It only took a few minutes to memorize it thoroughly.

"So, it's basically a type of Divine Sense shield that stops other Divine Senses from checking into my body to find out which race I am. It's quite simple too. I should be able to learn it by tomorrow before we leave."

The next morning, Yusa, Ao, and Shinja were already waiting for Krune at the Secret Realm entrance. But they noticed he was quite late already.

"Did something happen?"

They looked at each other. It was evident that none of them heard about anything.

"Let's go to his room to take a look."

Just as they were about to leave, Krune appeared in the distance, not long after he arrived.

"Sorry for making you wait. I was just talking with Lakin about something else."

Krune had left behind a copy of the Race Cover Technique for Lakin and Cassy, and probably even Dier. After all, Dier is also at the peak of the 9th stage of the Qi Condensation. He just needs to decide on his foundation, and he can start his breakthrough.

Krune then looked at everyone.

"Should we go?"

Since there was no problem, they nodded and departed. After traversing the gate, Krune used his privilege as Legacy Disciple to close it temporarily.

"Well, it will be at least three months for us to be back. Are you sure you don't want to stay, Shinja? I believe Cassy will be very happy if you keep her company."

Shinja shook her head.

"I do like Cassy very much, but I feel I will just get in Lakin's way if I stay behind."

Yusa and Ao heard that and laughed.

"Indeed, that would be a big problem."

Krune just sighed.

"So, do you also think Lakin is interested in Cassy?"

Ao, Yusa, and Shinja looked at Krune as if they had seen a ghost. With Krune's EQ, there should be no way he noticed it.

"Who are you? Where is Krune? What did you do to him?"

Krune looked at their reactions and had the urge to kick them away. Are they still his friends?

"Hmph! How could I not notice that? He looks at her the same way I looked at Feifei back then. I can at least see this much."

It was impressive how Krune could say those words without the least bit of embarrassment. The best part is that he could at least understand what it is to be interested in someone else.

Ao put one of his hands on Krune's shoulder.

"Brother, I'm happy to see you growing up."

Shinja and Yusa nodded their heads vigorously.

Krune felt that something was wrong.

'Why is that even when they are praising me. I feel like I'm being mocked instead?'

Krune just sighed and put those thoughts back on his mind. After that, all four of them swiftly left. Of course, they made sure not to leave any traces behind where the Rainbow Sect Secret Realm Entrance is located. Anyone who passes through there won't notice anything different.

Five days later, they arrived at Harta City. Instead of going back to the Kaley City Mercenary Guild Branch, they went to the Harta City's Branch. Instead, they contacted Lu Ganan in Kaley City to ask where they should teleport from here. After getting the teleport coordinates from Supervisor Lu, they went to the closest Long Distance Teleport Formation, paid the fee, and, in a flash of silver light, they disappeared.

Somewhere inside the Mercenary Guild Headquarters of the Yule Continent, a teleport formation started to shine. Instants later, four figures appeared on it. Obviously, they were Krune and his friend. As soon as they arrived, someone was there to receive them.

"Hello, my friends! My name is Linder, an employee of the Mercenary Guild. I'm here to guide you into your rooms."

Shinja was the most familiar with the Mercenary Guild Headquarters, so she came forward to compliment Linder.

"Very well, do you know if everyone is here already?"

Linder understood she was talking about those who would participate in the Mercenary Selection.

"Yes. There is a total of twenty-seven Foundation Establishment cultivators under the age of forty years old, and there are also three Star Mercenaries in the Headquarters, at the moment. That is already counting with you. Everyone will be departing in one week for the Mercenary Selection."

Shinja and the others understood. After that, Linder showed the way to the rooms prepared for them beforehand.

Linder took a few cards from his pocket and passed one to each member. He then explained:

"Those are the access cards you can use here in the Headquarters if you want to enter some room. Just use this card. If the room opens, it means you are allowed to enter. If not, then you aren't. It makes everything easier around here. Our Headquarters have everything you need: Formations, Blacksmiths, Runestones Formation, Alchemists, Puppets, and so forth. Make sure to check the terminal in your room. There you can find all the information you need while staying here."

Expect for Shinja, who had been here before. Krune and the others were quite amazed at the efficiency the headquarters were managed.

After Linder left, their group decided that since they still have to wait for a week, they might go and do whatever they like, in the meantime. Yusa was the first one to leave.

"The information says that the Headquarters have employed Six Stars cultivators for all the other occupations, so I'm going to the Runestone Formations room. See you later."

After that, she immediately left. She had also caught up with Ao when he stopped to open his Spiritual Energy Meridians. Now she is at the 8th Stage of the Foundation Establishment. Thanks to the Spiritual Energy Meridians, she can control three elements at the same time. In the end, she decided to basically use Water, Ice, and Lightning. She chose ice because it was a branch of the water element, and lightning because Shinja also used that. It complemented water type attacks very well too.

Ao decided to do something else.

"Their training facilities are great for sword users like me. So I'm going to take a look too."

With a swift breeze, Ao disappeared from where he was. He'd already reached the 8th Stage of the Foundation Establishment. He was able to open more Spiritual Energy Meridians with the rewards of completing the Soul Endurance Test's last level. So his control over the wind element improved even more, not to mention that now he can also use three different elements just like Yusa. In the end, he decided to specialize in Wind, Fire, and Metal. Wind and Fire complemented each other, while Metal, a branch of the earth element, can help him with his sword path.

Shinja didn't need to look at the information to know where to go.

"The Headquarters had paid for an Eight-Star Formations Master to set up an Eight-Star Spirit Gathering Formation in the past, so I'm going there now. You should try it later if you have time."

In the end, Krune was the only one left. After finding out that the guild had a Six-Star Blacksmith, his next stop was pretty obvious.

"Time to check if my idea is feasible or not!"

Using his lightning movement, Krune also disappeared in a flash of light.

Report chapter

It didn't take long for Krune to arrive at the Blacksmiths Hall. He went to the counter and asked it was possible to talk with a blacksmith at the moment.

"According to your ID, you are contestant Krune, right? This time, all the participants of the Mercenary Selection have high priority in the requests here in the Blacksmiths Hall. I will request one of them to see you in a moment. Please, wait in that room."

The attendant pointed at a door not too far. Krune went there and waited for the blacksmith to come. A few minutes later, a man who looked to be in his middle age appeared. Krune could feel that his cultivation had definitely reached the Core Formation Stage. So he was undoubtedly much older than he looked.

"Hello there! I'm the Five-Star Blacksmith Marcus. You are the one who needs some advice, right?"

Krune nodded. He then took out some paper drawings he had made and passed it over to Marcus. After taking a look at then, Marcus was impressed. It wasn't that it looked like it was hard to make or had any impressive design. The thing that surprised him was the quantity. He looked at Krune and asked:

"Hexagonal Flying Shields, right?"

"It's not hard to make, but are you sure you want these many? You definitely won't be able to control all of them at the same time. Are the rest of them just spare shields?"

Krune then took out of his spatial ring Thirty-Eight spirit stones. They were just low-level ones. He threw them in the air, and they started to float. He was using the spiritual energy inside and his own Divine Sense to control them. After that, he began to make several different movements. Sometimes they separated, sometimes they converged in line, and other times they formed a barrier. Marcus saw that and was really taken aback.

"What a frightening Soul Power and Divine Sense!"

Krune recovered his spirit stones back after that. He used spirit stones to practice because they already had spiritual energy inside them. So he didn't need to charge the spirit stones beforehand.

"The control isn't a problem. So, how much do you think it would cost to do this work?"

Marcus pondered a bit. Krune had asked for Thirty-Eight pieces. Although they weren't hard to make, there was the problem of the materials. But most important of all, it was the Divine Imprints.

"I will need at least Spiritual Azure Steel for me to attend your specs. Unlike other equipment, they will need to hold Spiritual Energy, fly and attach to each other. But those can be dealt with. The main issue here is the Divine Imprint each one of them will need."

Krune was puzzled.

"What is a Divine Imprint?"

Marcus then explained.

"For weapons like swords, for example, the user will only need to hold them. The weapon won't be leaving their hands. So a Divine Imprint isn't necessary. However, for weapons like flying swords, the user will need to control them with their Divine Sense, greatly affected by their Soul Power. If you don't use a Divine Imprint, someone with a stronger Divine sense and Soul power can simply take control over your flying sword, and then you will have no more weapon."

Krune understood the logic.

"Then, we do a Divine Imprint."

Marcus shook his head.

"If it were just one or at most three Divine Imprints, I would ask you to simply make them straight away and put the imprint in the piece of equipment that you want me to forge. You probably could use even seven or eight with your Soul Power and Divine Sense. There are thirty-eight Hexagonal Shields. Once you put your Divine Imprint Inside, it will change a little during the forging. So all your thirty-eight Shields are bound to have different Divine Imprints inside, in the end."

Krune was still puzzled.

"And is it a problem?"

Marcus then continued.

"A big problem!" The compatibility of Divine Sense and the Divine Imprint has to be the same. But since there would be only one or at most eight pieces, you shouldn't have any issues matching the compatibility necessary and control them. But to have thirty-eight different types of Divine Imprints and change your Divine Sense in thirty-eight compatible types will put a huge burden on the soul. As I said, even with a Divine Sense and Soul Power like yours, I reckon that you would be able to control at most seven or eight shields at once. And that is already very difficult."

Marcus then gave him an idea.

"But you could, for example, make seven bigger shields. It would be easier to control."

Krune shook his head.

"In that case, I won't be able to change them in several forms like I'm planning. They will also be much heavier, which will make them harder to control due to the G Force. Is there any other way to keep the Divine Imprints identical?"

Marcus nodded.

"There is! You have two options here. As the second option is out of the question, let me tell you the first."

"Divine Imprints are things we blacksmiths are specialized with. If you can create a Divine Imprints on par with the level of the equipment, they will not change after the forging is done. But in that case, they must be done by yourself."

Krune finally understood.

"Does it mean that Divine Imprints are pieces of equipment themselves. Is it not just some Divine Sense ability?"

Marcus laughed after hearing that.

"Of course not. It doesn't matter how strong your Divine Sense is. If you use it alone without anything else, it will disappear sooner or later. Divine Imprints are like talismans, something you make by fusing your Blood and Divine Sense into a seal that is then attached to the equipment during the forging. Once the equipment is done, only the Divine Imprint owner can control it."

"Because, usually, cultivators use weapons and armors held by their hands and bodies, Divine Imprints aren't that necessary, even if they do use something like a flying sword. They would have one, two, or at most three of them. So even the most basic Divine Imprint is already more than enough for them."

"Simply put, to use this option, you will need to become a blacksmith yourself."

Krune then asked what the second option is.

Marcus once again laughed.

"The second option is out of your reach! When a cultivator reaches the Divine Soul Realm or higher, they can use their Divine Sense and Blood to imprint an ownerless piece of equipment. In that case, the blacksmith would make identical Divine Imprint Seals, and the Divine Soul Cultivator can simply bound it to himself later. Otherwise, any high-level cultivator would need to become a blacksmith himself. That is too unrealistic."

Krune just shook his head. There is a long way until he reaches the Divine Soul Realm.

'So I will need to go to a Blacksmith Guild and apply to become one.'

He then asked Marcus:

"At what level of Blacksmith do I need to be to make Divine Imprints good enough for those shield materials?"

Marcus pondered a bit.

"The shields, you asked me to make, have to resist to even early stages Core Formation Realm cultivators for some time before running out of Spiritual Energy. I reckon that a Three-Star Blacksmith should suffice. Of course, it will take a long time for you to become one. But it is still much faster than wait for the Divine Soul Realm."

Krune nodded.

"Do you know the closest city with a Blacksmith Guild Branch where I can apply to take the test?"

Marcus answered: "Straight away."

"You don't need to leave the Mercenary Headquarters for that. It has employed the Six-Star cultivator of the various occupations. So our Blacksmith Hall can also provide the tests for Blacksmiths. If you go to the other Guilds Headquarters, you will find they also do the same. It's very convenient to have the necessary personal at all times, after all."

Krune was surprised at that. Since he doesn't need to go anywhere, he might as well try it out now.

"Then, I will take the test."

Marcus heard that and laughed.

"No problem! Although you can't become a Three-Star Blacksmith any time soon, it is still necessary to start at some point. As long as you persist, you will reach the level that you need."

He simply thought Krune was choosing the fastest way to get his hexagonal flying shields. Not for even a second, he believed Krune could become a Three-Star Blacksmith before the Martial Gathering.

Krune once again received the necessary material to study and shut himself in his room.

'I won't be able to get the shields ready for the Mercenary Selection, but I reckon I have a chance for the Martial Gathering.'

Thinking like that, Krune started to focus on his study of the materials. First, he would leave his room and go to the Blacksmith Hall to inquire about furnaces, materials, techniques, and the like. He soon became quite a common figure in the Blacksmith Hall during that short time.

Ao was in the Mercenary Headquarters training room, practicing his sword movements. The training room was enormous, and you could see quite a few people there at the moment. He had activated a protection formation in the platform he was to prevent his attacks from going outside. Some looked at him but didn't see anything strange because Ao wasn't using any skills. He just moved his sword around, so no one noticed anything out of the normal.

But if a realm Swords Master was present. He definitely would have his jaws dropped, because there was something else coming from Ao's sword movements. It wasn't the Wind Element Sword Qi that Ao usually used with his swords skills like the Vacuum Blade. It was something different, much sharper, and threatening. Something only masters of the sword should be able to do.

Sword Intent!

It was just recently that Ao started to perceive this difference in the movements of his sword. At first, he didn't understand what it was. Just that it was much more powerful than his Wind Element Sword Qi. It was only after the Sword Intent started taking form that he understood what was happening. Ao had heard about the Sword Intent before, but that was something way out of his reach. So, when he found out he was able to generate a Sword Intent, he was ecstatic and puzzled. Since when did he understand the sword getting so good?

After thinking for a while, the answer was obvious. Krune had been guiding him in elements control all this while. With better control over his wind element, his sword skills improved by leaps and bounds to the point where he could even become a Three-Star mercenary easily. He has no doubt that if he were at the Core Formation Stage, becoming a Four-Star Mercenary would be simple. And, after he opened his own Spiritual Energy Meridians, his control over the elements got even better. For the Sword Intent to form was just a question of time.

It is just that in the Makui Planet, cultivators with Sword Intent usually are at least in the Core Formation Realm and lived for at least a hundred years or more. Those having Sword Intent and still in the Foundation Establishment are just a few. But being in Foundation Establishment Realm, having Sword Intent, and, at the same time, being under 40 years old can be counted using the fingers of their hands!

Ao didn't see the time passing, and soon it's been already afternoon of the second day since his group arrived at the Mercenary Headquarters. He was just practicing as always when, suddenly, someone called his attention outside of the protection formation. Ao was immediately pushed back off that state. He thought it to be sad, but he could only blame himself for that. He deactivated the protection formation and looked at who was calling him.

The person was quite tall, short red hair, and no beard. His name was Turi Belane, a Three-Star Mercenary at the peak of the 9th Stage of the Foundation Establishment, who came for the Mercenary Selection as well.

He looked at Ao with some disdain on his face. The reason he came to bother Ao was that he inquired about the competitors for that Mercenary Selection, who were already in the Headquarters. He then found out that the 'super genius,' Krune, that had been on the news of the Mercenary Guild, had already arrived for the Mercenary Selection too. But it doesn't matter how much Turi looked, he couldn't find him at all. He couldn't be blamed. In the last two days, if Krune weren't in his room, he definitely was in the Blacksmith Hall. So it is no wonder that no one has found him yet.

In the end, Turi found out that this Krune had come with another three people. Two of them were here to take part in the Mercenary Selection too. It didn't take long for him to discover Ao, who had been in the Training Room all that time.

"I heard you are friends. Probably even a team member of that Krune whose the Mercenary Guild claims to be their trump card this time around for the Mercenary Selection. Tell me where he is."

Turi couldn't accept it. He was the leader of the Carnage Team that monopolized the first position of the Sky Rank System the last two times. But, instead of promoting him, the Mercenary Headquarters announced Krune as their strongest member for the Mercenary Selection. The worst of all is that Krune wasn't anywhere close to the top of the Sky Rank System. Turi looked through all the first 100 teams, but not a single one had Krune in it. He didn't know what the Mercenary Headquarters was thinking, so he decided to test the guy himself.

Ao had a nonchalant expression on his face. He looked at Turi from head to toe and then just shook his head. There was nothing worth paying attention to! He just turned around to go back to his sword training when Turi appeared in front of him.

"Are you deaf? If you don't want to get into trouble, then tell me where he is now!"

Turi extended his hand and was about to grab Ao when, suddenly, his hand passed through Ao's body as he was a ghost. Turi's eyes almost popped out of their sockets when he saw that. Then he spread his Divine Sense and found out Ao was already back on the platform he'd been training before. Everyone around looked at that scene and started to discuss what had happened. Turi felt like he was humiliated, took out his sword, and pointed at Ao.

"A puny 8th-stage Foundation Establishment thinks he can take part in the Mercenary Selection, but, in the end, he can only flee. Are your friends as cowards as you just now?"

Ao stopped in his steps and looked back. His eyes were cold, he took a deep breath and asked:

"What do you want?"

Turi showed an evil smile and said:

"Let's have a duel! If I win, you will tell me where Krune is, if I lose, you can ask me anything."

It was then that Ao's eyes lit up. The Spiritual Energy Meridians are good, but they are also bottomless black holes. Every new one uses a lot more Spiritual Stones than the last, not to mention that he needed to leave out some for his own cultivation as well.

Ao looked at Turi, but he didn't see a person anymore, just a treasure trove.

"I accept!"

Sometime before Ao accepted the challenge, Yusa was inside the Runestone Formations Hall. Now, that she is already at the 8th Stage of the Foundation Establishment, she didn't need to hide the fact that she can control three elements at once. Then, she immediately took the test to become a Three-Star Runestone Formations Master.

"Alright, with this last Runestone I should have no issues in passing the exam. After that, I guess I will make some runestones to sell later, I'm my short in spirit stones after all."

There was a problem! She forgot that an 8th Stage Foundation Establishment being able to control three elements was very rare in the Makui Planet. So, when she passed over the Runestones Formations she made using three elements, the examiner was taken aback. It would be okay if she were a Core Formation Realm cultivator, but she definitely isn't.

"This lady here! Would you mind waiting for a little? I have to pass those Runestone Formations you made to someone else for evaluation. The ones you made are above what I can judge."

Yusa was taken aback. She didn't expect the Runestones she made would turn out that good. She didn't put much focus on them, after all. Yusa had, once again, underestimated the usefulness of the Spiritual Energy Meridians. Not to mention that her Soul Power and Divine Sense are also much stronger than cultivators at her level.

Sometime later, an old man came into the testing room. He looked around and soon found Yusa there. He put a smile on his face and then asked:

"Was it you who made those Runestone Formations?"

Yusa just nodded.

"Would you mind making one of them again for me to see? Don't worry, this is not related to the test anymore. You have already been accepted as a Three-Star Runestone Formations Master."

"Will you pay for the materials?"

The man was taken aback but nodded nonetheless.

"Can I take this Runestone for myself after I finish?"

"Well, sure, you can take it."

Only then Yusa started to work. If there were a thing she definitely wouldn't do, it would be to work for free. But since they were paying for the materials and she could take the Runestone away, then she has nothing against it.

After some time, the Runestones were finally made. Yusa made them using her Divine Sense and spiritual energy to fuse the materials inside the Runestones to inscribe the formation. This time Yusa made a Three-Star Teleport Runestone Formation.

The man looked at the whole process and was impressed with the ability she controlled the elements. The fusion technique, the inscription. Everything was made with high proficiency. It was hard to believe that a Foundation Establishment cultivator could reach this level. It was just a little bit away from a Four-Star Runestone Formation.

"Impressive."

The old man took his eyes away from the Runestone and then looked at Yusa.

"I'm this Runestone Formations Hall Supervisor, Halie Bens, and a Six-Star Runestone Formations Master. Can I ask your name?"

Yusa was surprised. So this was the Six-Star Runestone Formations Master the Mercenary Guild employed to work in their Headquarters!

"I'm Yusa Shen, it's nice to meet you, Hall Supervisor."

Halie nodded his head.

"I will be direct, would you like to be my disciple?"

Yusa thought she heard something wrong. A Six-Star Runestone Formations Master was asking if she wanted to be his disciple?! It shouldn't be right.

"Supervisor Halie, could it be that you are wrong? I'm just a newly acknowledged Three-Star Runestone Formations Master. I'm far from your league."

Halie didn't mind and just laughed.

"There is nothing wrong at all. I've just checked your Runestones crafting ability. It is definitely top-notch. You are more than worthy of my tutelage. I can guarantee you that! It only depends on you whether you want it or not."

Yusa was surprised, it was too sudden. No doubt, that was a great opportunity, but she had her misgivings as well.

"Would you mind if I think about it for a while? I came to the Mercenary Headquarters as one of the Three-Star Mercenaries who will participate in the Mercenary Selection, so I need to focus on that first."

Halie wasn't surprised at that answer. Before he came to check Yusa, he had already checked who she was and what she was doing there.

"No problem at all! Just make sure not to get seriously injured during the Selection. After it is over, you can look for me. I will be here for some time anyway."

Halie then laughed and left.

Yusa took a deep breath and looked at the direction Halie left. If it were before, when she didn't know Krune, she would have jumped inside Halie's boat straight away. But she knew her abilities at that moment were also because of that encounter. Not to mention that she hasn't decided whether she would be going to the Divine Path Sect Entrance Exam. It would all depend on her results during the Mercenary Selection and on the Martial Gathering.

"I will discuss this with everyone when we gather again."

Yusa spent some time in the office waiting for her Three-Star badge, when. Everything was done. She remembered Ao was close by, so she went to the training room because she wanted to talk with Ao first. After arriving there, she would see a tumult around one of the arenas in the training room. She got curious and went to check what was happening. It was then that she saw Ao in the arena as well.

"What is he doing?"

Ao also noticed Yusa appearing. So, before the dual started, he'd gone there to see what she wanted.

"Do you need anything?"

Yusa shook her head and then asked.

"I just want to talk with you a little, but it's nothing important. What is happening here?"

Ao sighed and then told what had happened with Turi before. After hearing that, Yusa shook her head; she knew Ao's strength very well. After taking a look at that Turi, she knew that guy was basically giving his spirit stones away for free.

"Well, he was the one who asked for it. Just don't take too long to finish it. I want to talk about something with you."

Ao nodded his head.

"It should take just a few seconds. We are just waiting for a referee to come. As you know, outside danger zones, killing is prohibited. So we need someone with high cultivation to stop the battle in case things go wrong."

Turi was in the arena and heard the entire conversation, not only him but also everyone who was watching. It was obvious Ao didn't consider him as his match at all. Although Turi was furious, he didn't lose his calm. If he were someone that left his rage, take the better from him! He definitely wouldn't be the leader of the first-sky ranked team.

"I might not be able to kill you! But crippling you shouldn't be an issue at all."

Not long after, a 6th-stage Core Formation Realm referee entered the arena. Different from the Mercenary Selection and the Martial Gathering, duels outside of the danger zone wouldn't be too risky, so the Mercenary Headquarter didn't stop them from acting like that.

At the same time that everyone was looking at the arena, another two persons were watching it through the security camera. They were none other than Bary and Kassius, the Guild Head, and the Reviews Office Supervisor.

"What do you think? Turi had been the leader of the Carnage Team for some time already. Do you think Ao's involvement with Krune had improved his abilities enough to take Turi head-on?"

Bary heard that question but didn't have an answer. They had very little information about Yusa and Ao. So they didn't know how much stronger they got since the last time when they took the Three-Star Mercenary Test.

"If I had to bet, I would bet in a draw. I think he probably is strong enough to take Turi but not defeat him."

Kassius heard that and then commented:

"This Ao Sulian seems extremely confident, though?"

Bary frowned. That was exactly what had been bothering him, and there was no way Ao Sulian knew who Turi Belane was, but he still had that confidence on his face.

"Let's wait and see! Ao's strength will give us an idea of how much strong Krune is."

Kassius nodded and then waited for the duel to start.

Back at the arena, the referee confirmed that both of them were ready. He asked them to stay away from each other and then raised his hand. After taking a final look, he dropped it.

"Start!"

Turi didn't waste time. He wanted to show everyone the difference between the team leader of the strongest team in the Yule Continent and some unknown cultivator that thought big about himself. He immediately used his most vigorous attack.

"Sword of the Fire Emperor!"

This was a merging skill that used both wind and fires the same as Ao himself; flames rushed from everywhere. They spiraled around Turi's Sword. He then executed his movement technique and charged forward. He wanted to finish it in one strike.

Ao saw that and became disappointed. Thanks to the power of his Soul, Divine Sense, and the Spiritual Energy Meridians, he could see flaws everywhere. But this was also an excellent opportunity. He wanted to check how good his newly acquired Sword Intent was. So, instead of taking advantage of the flaws in the attack, Ao met the Sword of the Fire Emperor head-on!

Ao fused his Metal Element in his swords. After that, the wind element gathered around it. Finally, the fire element came forward, and his Sword started to burn, compared to the 'Sword of the Fire Emperor.' Ao's skill seemed quite simple and unremarkable. Except for Yusa, Bary, and Kassius, everyone else thought he would lose in the next second, and the referee would need to save his life. Ao then activated his own movement technique and stepped forward. His eyes looked cold at his opponent. Sword Intent started to come out of his Sword, while he murmured the name of his own skill.

"Decapitation in Flames!"

The moment Ao's skill came out, the referee's heart almost stopped!

"Sword Intent!"

The referee immediately disappeared from his spot and was just barely able to kick Turi out of the way the last instant. It was so close that both the 'Sword of the Fire Emperor' and the 'Decapitation in Flames' hit each other before Turi was sent flying by the referee. The Sword of the Fire Emperor was slashed through as if there weren't anything to start with. Turi's Sword was cut through as it was made of tofu; the 'Decapitation in Flames' slash didn't stop there and hit the barrier protecting the arena. Fortunately, that barrier was built to resist even to attacks from Late Stages Core Formation Realm Cultivators. So it was able to hold it off. Just like that, the duel was really over in a single strike, Ao's single strike, though.

Turi had his Divine Sense spread out all the time. Even after being kicked away, he saw what had happened with his 'Sword of the Fire Emperor' skill and the Sword itself. If the referee hadn't moved in time, he would have no head anymore!

Ao turned his vision to Turi. That look made him almost piss in his pants. Ao then smiled and said:

"Spirit stones, I want all the spirit stones on you. Don't forget, you said I could ask anything! So, you won't go back on your word, right?"

Turi was sweating all over. He didn't dare to go back on his words at all. He immediately transferred all the spirit stones he had in his spatial ring and passed them over. Ao looked at the number and was really surprised.

"As expected of the first place in the Sky Rank, you are wealthy! Thank you for your patronage."

Ao was just about to leave the arena when he suddenly stopped on his steps and turned back.

"Oh, I forgot to mention. I'm no match for Krune. If you still want to challenge him or not, that is up to you."

Everyone heard that and felt a chill on their back. Ao is already strong to the point where he can trash the leader of the team in the first place of the Sky Rank. If he isn't a match for Krune, then just how much stronger is Krune?

Yusa was the only one who looked bored. She'd already expected this result from the start. She knew Ao wasn't lying either. He really wasn't Krune's match. Only when she and Ao fought could they put some resistance against Krune. And that was when he wasn't in his wisp form.

Ao descended from the arena, and Yusa immediately kicked him in the but.

"Look how rich you are now, give me some!"

Ao's face immediately went dark.

"Scram! This grandfather was ready to start begging on the streets before that guy had come in. Go, find a fool for yourself."

Between jokes and curses, both of them left the training room.

Bary and Kassius were looking at the screen as if they had seen a ghost. Their eyes were almost popping out of their sockets!

"Th-That… That was Sword Intent, wasn't it?!"

Bary nodded his head, but he couldn't believe that either.

"To think that not only do we have Krune! We also have someone like Ao Sulian, but I'm also getting afraid our Yule Continent might use the next ten thousand years of luck to give birth to those two."

Kassius heard that and shook his head.

"Don't forget! It was only after meeting Krune that his ability increased to that point. Did you hear what he'd said before leaving? He said that he isn't Krune's match!"

Bary took a deep breath.

"Our Yule Continent finally has a chance at the Martial Gathering, maybe even the Divine Path Sect Entrance Exam, and not only one, but four chances. Don't forget Yusa and Shinja are also part of his team. If Shinja hadn't reached the Core Formation Realm changing their team into a Heaven Rank one, they could totally dominate the Sky Rank for as long as they wished."

Kassius nodded, and suddenly, his eyes lit up.

"And as the guild that found them, hehe."

Bary burst in laugh after hearing that.

Back at the Blacksmith Guild, a certain wisp was practicing his forging skills. He didn't know about anything happening outside and that all the Yule Continent Headquarters competitors see him now as a monster that can't be offended at any cost.

'Atchoo!'

"Is someone talking about me?"

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Yusa was explaining Ao the offer she'd received from Halie. Hearing that made him start to ponder.

"Well, there is no doubt this is a good chance. But you saw just now that was the leader of the Carnage Team, the one ranked first in the Sky Rank System. Even so, I couldn't help but think how weak he was. Of course, Yule Continent is seen as the weakest continent, so the competitors in the Mercenary Selection and the Martial Gathering after it are bound to be much stronger. But even so, for you who have a strength similar to mine, I still think you should aim at the Divine Path Sect first."

Yusa nodded. That's what she was thinking too. Ao then commented:

" If that Six-Star Runestones Formations Master really wants you as a disciple, I doubt he will change his mind in just three months both competitions take place."

"Do You think so?"

Ao nodded.

"I refuse to believe he will find someone as good as you anytime soon. Who out there can match the power of the Spiritual Energy Meridians? They are the main reason why he got so impressed."

Yusa took a deep breath and nodded.

Later that night, she gathered with Shinja and Krune and told them her plans. Krune heard that and simply said:

"Isn't that good? Having a backup plan when things don't go the way you planned to. That's the right way to go."

Shinja also nodded.

"I concur, you don't know if you have enough strength to enter the top 10 of the Mercenary Gathering. The same goes for Ao and even Krune, and let's say that only Krune and I go to the Divine Path Sect entrance exam. and if we both failed, we would come back after that anyway."

She said that she doesn't believe the Divine Path Sect would give up on Krune once they find that he has an Elemental Core. Even if he failed the exam, they would still take him in. But she didn't say those words not to make things difficult for Yusa.

"Then I will do that! Besides, who knows, I might really enter the sect."

She then just laughed.

Everyone went back to their own things after that.

There was only one day remaining before they departed for the Mercenary Selection. That day, Krune went back to the Blacksmith Hall to take the exam. He wanted to know if he could become at least a One Star Blacksmith, already.

Marcus was the examiner at that time around. He was the one who had told Krune he could do the Blacksmith Exam in the Hall, so he wanted to see how much he'd improved in just six days.

"Very well! Your job is to forger a simple Divine Imprint. The materials are all on the table. Although it takes some time until you to forge a Divine Imprint good enough to resist the forging process without changing, a simple one should be easy to accomplish."

Krune nodded. If it were just a basic Divine Imprint, he was confident that he could forger one.

Divine Imprints could be forged through the use of blood and Divine Sense. As for the materials, in fact, as long as it were good enough to resist the battle of the cultivator specific level, that was good enough. So Krune used one of the common materials available, Spiritual Iron, a type of metal that could be found almost in any Blacksmith store.

'To forge the Divine Imprint, I will have to fuse some of my own blood inside the ore without losing the blood or the metal characteristics. My blood will be the container which will keep my Divine Sense inside, while the iron will be the protection.'

Krune started straight away. With the help of the equipment in the exam room, he could check the Iron temperature all the time, using his own spiritual energy to manipulate the fire element. The Iron temperature slowly increased. The trick was to protect the blood with their spiritual energy so that the hot iron wouldn't destroy it. For Krune. Who has the All-Encompassing Soul Technique and the Spiritual Energy Meridians, it was a too easy way.

After the right temperature was achieved, he started hammering it while applying a few drops of his blood. Divine Imprints aren't anything big. In fact, they are very small. Even the hammer used to mold it was a lot smaller than normal hammers. All to precisely control the Divine Imprint creation.

Marcus was looking at the process and was really impressed. Krune's control over the fire element far exceeded his expectations. He was even using wind element at the same time to increase the effectiveness of the fire element without damaging the blood properties.

'This is far above what a One Star Blacksmith can do. If he finishes this Divine Imprint like this, it won't be a problem to give him a Two- Star Blacksmith Badge straight away.'

Time passed, and slowly the Spiritual Iron took the form of a circle. Its color also changed. One could see that it was somewhat blood- red now. But Krune noticed one thing when he used his Divine Sense to check the fusion of the blood and the iron. He could see that although they are fused together now, their properties aren't exactly the same. If he wanted, he could use his powerful Divine Sense and Spiritual Energy Meridians element control to forcefully match each other.

'I see! It is because blood also has iron in its composition. No wonder they use blood to keep the owners' Divine Sense. Let's give it a try!'

Krune stopped hammering at this point. The Divine Imprint had already taken the desired form. So he started infusing his Divine Sense into his blood, and, at the same time, match the two metal properties together. Fortunately, both metals are iron, so it was a lot easier than he thought.

As soon as Krune started to match the properties of the blood iron and the spiritual iron, Marcus's jaw almost dropped on the floor.

'I see! I spent all night forging and haven't take a break yet. I'm hallucinating now, yes, that must be it!'

He took a deep breath, used his spiritual energy to clear his mind, and only then took a look inside the Divine Imprint with his Divine Sense again. But nothing changed, Krune was still matching the two irons properties, and it won't be long before he finishes.

'Impossible! This isn't a thing you can do with elements alone. He would need to have a Divine Sense that matches an early stage Core Formation Realm. But he is obviously at the 7th stage of the Foundation Establishment!'

Krune had no idea about what Marcus was thinking. He just wanted the One-Star blacksmith badge for now. After the Mercenary Selection, he will focus even more on his blacksmithing and try to get to the level of a Three-Star before the Martial Gathering. With some luck, he might be able to finish his Hexagonal Flying Shields before it starts.

A few minutes later, Krune finally finished the process. He then cooled down the Divine Imprint and passed it over to Marcus to check how it was. He was pretty confident he would get his One- Star badge today.

Marcus looked at the Divine Imprint on his hands and took a deep breath. He knew Krune wasn't a blacksmith. He really started to practice it six days ago. He turned to Krune and asked:

"How did you know that the Spiritual Iron and the iron in the blood properties could be matched?"

Krune answered straight away.

"I didn't. But when I was getting close to the end, I noticed I could forcefully match them during the fusion process using my control over the fire element and my Divine Sense to check the process. I didn't know whether it was a good idea, but it seemed the right thing to do at that time, so I did it."

Marcus heard that but couldn't believe it. The study materials given for new contestants don't include the properties of blood and metal matching process. It should be something you can only do after your Divine Sense is strong enough to perceive those properties inside the metals. Usually, it would only happen once you enter the Core Formation Realm to have a Divine Sense as strong as a Core Formation Realm cultivator while still in the Foundation Establishment. Just what kind of monster did he find?

"Your exam is over. You did a great job with the Divine Imprint! In fact, the properties matching process should be something only Four-Star Blacksmiths at the Core Formation Realm can do. Although you really did that while using one of the easiest metals, you haven't forged any weapon or armor yet. So I can't be sure you really achieved that level. So, for now, I will give you a Three-Star Badge."

Krune didn't mind at all. In fact, he was ecstatic. It means that he, at least, has the ability to make a Divine Imprint good enough to resist the forging process of his shields without suffering any changes.

"I will be leaving for the Mercenary Selection tomorrow. Do you think my Hexagonal Flying Shields could be completed before that?"

Marcus shook his head.

"Although they aren't hard to make at my level, it would still take some time. Thirty-eight shields would need at least one week for me to finish. So you might as well ask someone else later. It will be good if you have all 38 forged for the same person as well."

Marcus pondered a bit and then said.

"The Mercenary Selection will take place inside a danger zone, so there won't be any blacksmiths there. But, after it is over, the contestants of the Yule Continent will come back here first before leaving to do their own things. At that time, you could come back, and we could work on it together."

Krune heard that and nodded his head.

"This is good for me too, I will pass by when I'm back."

Marcus nodded and brought Krune to the office where he could get his badge. Since the examination had a Five-Star Blacksmith overseeing, there was no need to contact the Blacksmith Headquarters in the Yule continent. In just thirty minutes, Krune's badge was done. After getting it, he went back to his room. He wanted to take some rest before their departure the next day.

After seeing Krune off, Marcus was back into the Blacksmith Hall. He went directly inside the office of the Six-Star Blacksmith, the place's supervisor, Jorge Lanil.

Noticing Marcus entering his office, Jorge stopped what he was doing and asked:

"Is he gone now?"

Marcus nodded.

"I just saw him off. I gave him a Three-Star Badge just like you said."

Jorge nodded.

"That is good enough. According to what I know, he is a Four-Star Alchemist as well as Formations Master. Now, he showed enough talent for us to give a Four-Star badge as well, but I can't do that."

Marcus couldn't help but ask why.

"Because I believe he can become one as long as he wants, he can come back and practice some time more and apply for a Four-Star test. If he doesn't do that, it means he doesn't want to be a Blacksmith to start. You told him it was because he hasn't forger a weapon or armor to that level yet, right?"

Marcus nodded.

"But, in the end, he didn't ask you to give him a chance to forge them. He only wants to be able to make a Divine Imprint at the right level and have someone forging the equipment. In that case, there is no need to give him a Four-Star Badge."

Marcus then asked.

"But isn't it bad to let such talent go like that?"

Jorge heard that and laughed.

"No problem at all! He will probably want to make something himself in the future; at that time, he will come back to forge. I'm looking forward to what he will do when he really puts his mind on that."

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Krune and the others took their time to rest during the last day. The next morning, all the contestants gathered in the teleportation room. Krune was one of the last to arrive. As soon as he entered the room, everyone looked at him; he thought something was weird. As far as he knew, he didn't make anything that could have caught their attention.

Poor Krune! He didn't know that everyone considered him the strongest contestant of the Yule Continent. That was because of what Ao said after the Duel; he'd easily beat Turi Belane and told him that he wasn't Krune's match. The contestants have already known that they couldn't beat Ao, and if Ao couldn't beat Krune, they would have even less of a chance. So, it was obvious everyone paid especial attention to Krune.

"Do you know what is happening here? Why are they looking at me?"

Ao shook his head and told Krune what had happened that day with Turi. Krune heard and could only give a helpless sigh.

"Even when I'm not doing anything, the world conspires against my wishes."

But since he is already famous, thanks to the Mercenary Guild's plan, some extra attention won't change anything, in the end.

Sometime later, the Yule Continent Mercenary Guild Head, Bary Casfiu, came into the room. Together with him, there were a few elders of the guild as well. They were there to make sure that nothing would happen with the contestants. But there was one person in the middle of those elders who gave Krune a sense of danger. He couldn't see through any of those people's cultivation, but he was sure that the elder was definitely much stronger than the rest.

Shinja was also looking at that, and she was surprised when she saw that elder as well. She knew who he was. The Makui Planet is a weak planet and has very few cultivators above the Divine Soul Realm. However, that elder just so happened to be one of them. His name is Lian Casfiu, Bary's father and the protector of the Mercenary Guild in the Yule Continent, also a Soul Forging Realm cultivator. He wasn't tall and didn't like to use beard either. He gave a sense of carefreeness, putting people at ease, but no one would underestimate this man.

While passing, Lian gave a side glance at Krune. As the person with the highest cultivation in the Mercenary Guild Headquarters, he was obviously privy to some secrets, including Krunes 'Rainbow Core. The only reason he was coming together for this Mercenary Selection was to make sure Krune would be safe.

Bary then went up on a platform and started talking with the contestants.

"The Mercenary Selection will start in a day. So we are teleporting over there now to get ready. However, the Selection will happen inside a Danger Zone so that no one needs to hold back. It will still be done close to the exit, so we don't really need a lot of time to arrive. There is also no need to be afraid of anyone taking the chance to attack you. Several elders of all Mercenary Guilds in the whole world will be there watching over it."

Bary then put a severe expression and continued:

"But remember! Even if you are close to the Danger Zone exit, you will still be considered inside it. It means that no one will show any mercy during the Selection. You might really die there! If you aren't confident in your skills, you might leave right now!"

Bary waited a minute, but no one moved. He then gave a satisfied nod and proceeded.

"Come over the long-distance teleport formation. The Selection this time will happen in the Ice Continent, Ice Hell Danger Zone. We are teleporting over to the Snow City, the closest city to where the Selection will take place."

Everyone then went up to the teleport formation. Krune was surprised to find out that this Formation was using Rank Five Spirit Stones to be charged up. It goes to show how far away the Ice Continent is from the Yule Continent. After a few seconds more, the Formation gathered enough Spiritual Energy, and with a flash of silver light, everyone disappeared.

'Snow City' was a very simple name, but it was really fit too. Because of its location close to the Ice Hell Danger Zone, it snowed all year long. The local cultivators used a gigantic formation that covered the entire city to keep the snow from accumulating.

Although the Danger Zone was called Ice Hell, it wasn't one of the most dangerous of the Ice Continent. The Mercenary Guild World Alliance just wanted a place to test their contestants; it would be one versus one fights. So there was no need to care about the difficulty of the Danger Zone. The place had already been prepared and was just waiting for the Mercenaries of the other continents to arrive.

A teleport formation close to the center of the city started to shine. Just a second later, several people appeared over it. They were the Yule Continent Mercenary Guild contestants and their elders. Bary took a look around, and soon a person came to receive them.

"Hello, I'm your guide this time around. I'm here to show you the way to the arenas where the contestants will fight."

Bary nodded and looked at the people behind him.

"If you have anything you need, say that now; otherwise, we will depart straight away."

No one said anything. They all knew the days they would be leaving, so everyone had been long since prepared for it. Whatever they needed was already inside their spatial rings. Noticing that no one said anything, Bary asked the guide to show them the way.

Everyone stopped by the city gate connecting them to the Danger Zone, and signed the death agreement. That was something that everyone was already used. Even so, that time, it felt a little heavier. It would be a lot more dangerous, after all.

After traversing the gate, they immediately moved forward. As mentioned before, the arenas for the Mercenary Selection had already been prepared. They were close to the city itself, so it only took them one hour to get there.

Bary noticed that his guild was the last one to arrive. All the contestants from the other four continents and their higher-ups were waiting. He told his group to get prepared for the next day's battles. He left with his father and a few elders to compliment the other continent's Headquarters' Guild Heads.

Krune looked around and thought that something was weird. He then sent a Divine Sense message to his group.

"Isn't there way too little people here?"

Shinja then explained.

"Those aren't all the participants. The important ones are not here. They are probably gathered together with their elders. Those you see are only the ones who don't have any deep relationship with their guilds higher-ups. Of course, it doesn't mean that they are weak; they just don't have the elders' support."

It was then that Bary called Krune and some of the other people of his continent to come with him. But to Bary's surprise, Krune rejected. He told Bary he didn't want to get involved in the higher-ups' conversation. Bary found it strange since, usually, no one would decline the chance to get acquainted with the strong cultivators of the other continents. But knowing how weird Krune's behavior usually is, he simply left it at that. He then called some other people to make up the appearances and left.

Krune's group didn't have much to do anyway, so Krune decided to make some food. Yusa and the others didn't think anything strange about it and went there to help. They had long since got used to eating Krune's food, not to mention that he is really good at it, but that was only them. The contestants of the other four continents looked at that and didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Do they know they might die tomorrow?"

"Who knows! Maybe they think they will die and are having their last meal!"

"They are from the Yule Continent, so it's normal that those countrysides like people to have weird ways of acting."

Soon, everyone started talking about that scene and laughed at Krune's arrangement. Of course, everyone except for the people of the Yule Continent, they wouldn't dare offend him.

They didn't mind, though. Eating well is to be happy. Krune couldn't care less about what they think. He loved eating, so he would eat. That's all.

Slowly, the fragrance of Krune's food started to spread. One must remember that Krune liked to use his own fire element to make the cook. He also used spiritual energy in the food itself, it made his food extremely delicious. That, together with the right seasoning and cooking steps, made his food no worse than any famous restaurant. Ao and the others had long since got used to Krune's food taste. So, even when they weren't together, they would usually go to expensive restaurants anyway. Of course, they still preferred Krune's delicacies.

The cultivators and demon beasts, who were mocking them before, started to salivate. As mercenaries, they got used to staying outside, so fasting pills came to be their main source of aliment. That moment when such a fragrant food was right beside them, they couldn't help but want to taste a little. The problem was that they just talked bad about Krune's group arrangements, so they couldn't simply go back on their words.

Krune wasn't paying attention to them, but Ao, Yusa, and Shinja were. They could see that the bad-mouthing had stopped and several eyes fixed on Krune's food. They couldn't help but smile a bit. That was what they deserved. If there was one thing they knew was not to look down on Krune's cooking skills.

The food was finally ready. Krune put all on the table, and all of them started to enjoy the lunch. Finally, there was one guy shameless enough to throw away his pride and ask for some.

"Err… These brothers and sisters. Sorry for the comments earlier. Would you mind sharing a little?"

Shinja and the others didn't say anything. The chef here was Krune! It was up to him whether he wanted to share or not. Krune just gave him a side glance and then pointed at one of the plates on the table. He usually made a lot of food anyway. And since he got an apology, he had no reason to hold and grudges anymore. Krune's group was already expecting that. They knew very well Krune wasn't the type to care about what people said. To him, an apology could resolve almost anything.

The guy was ecstatic. He immediately sat on one side of the table and started to serve himself.

"By the way, my name is Karl Rabier, I'm from the Borle Continent."

Krune nodded.

"I'm Krune. Those are Shinja, Ao, and Yusa."

The group then started to talk about the Mercenary Selection while eating happily. Soon, a few more cultivators from the other continents came to apologize as well. Krune didn't mind and simply told them to help themselves. But then the situation got a little out of hand. It was because the food disappeared too fast. There were simply too many people.

The later come people noticed that it was almost over and regretted not coming to offer an apology earlier. If just their pride hadn't got the best of them, now it was too late. But then Krune stood up and simply said.

"The food was over faster than I thought. I will make some more. Wait a little bit."

Although there was a lot of food, the ingredients used were all common ones that could be bought with copper and silver. So it made no difference in Krune's pocket, not to mention that he liked it when people eat his food happily. It was one more reason other than being friends. He never complained about Shinja, Ao, and Yusa always eating his food.

Not too long after, the fragrant smell appeared again. It wasn't long before a lot more food appeared on the table. That time the latecomers didn't care anymore and apologized, as well. And, just like that, all Mercenaries from All Continents were eating Krune's food while chatting happily. No one noticed, but the heavy air around the participants of the Selection disappeared without a trace.

Unfortunately, there would always be those who are too proud to admit their mistakes. One of them went out to call an elder of his guild Headquarters. He said Krune might have poisoned all the food of the contestants. It wouldn't be fair to fight the other day. Hearing that, all the higher-ups of the various guilds became alarmed and immediately came to check.

"Sky Fall Continent Mercenaries, what the hell are you doing?"

The Mercenaries of the Sky Fall Continent immediately stopped eating and looked over. The one calling them out was none other than the Guild Head of the Sky Fall Continent Mercenary Headquarters, Yulie Forgon.

He wasn't the only one. The other guild heads also came forward to rebuke their contestants, saying the same thing, what if the food was poisoned?

Krune heard that and felt like beating all of them. He hated when people talked bad about his food. He knew that it wasn't his place to speak back to those guys. They were all several times stronger than him, not to mention that he knew that his food was perfectly fine, and that was what mattered.

Of course, saying the food was poisoned was just an excuse to stop their members from embarrassing them. There was no way someone would try to poison the other contestants right under their nose. Not to mention that only those without support were eating Krune's food. They simply didn't care whether they got poisoned or not. After they left, Krune just sighed. There was quite some food still. He, the team members, and the cultivators of his continent went back to eat again. Krune couldn't bear to waste food after all.

There was a group of cultivators at the Foundation Establishment among the various elders. They saw everything that had happened and just laughed. They were none other than those who were seen as the favorites to get the five slots available for the martial Gathering. Among them, a woman said:

"That's quite an interesting guy! Did you notice that before the elders intervened, everyone was happily chatting and eating? It seems like he does have some charisma."

Her name was Lina Jue, a peak 9th-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator from Makui Continent, the continent, the cultivators first colonized when they arrived at the Makui Planet. In the end, the Planet got the same name as the continent.

"What use is there in being able to cook? It has no use in the Selection anyway. He is doing nothing more than wasting his time. I can't understand how he convinced the Ice Block Shinja to join his group, though."

The one who talked that time was Rog Werer, peak 9th-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator from Sky Fall Continent. It was a tropical place where it rained a lot, thus the name Sky Fall.

"To think that even a 7th-Stage Foundation Cultivator like him came for the Mercenary Selection this time! The Yule Continent is fragile, as the rumors say."

Said Tasier, peak 9th-stage Foundation Establishment Thunder Hawk Demon Beast from the Borle continent. The stronger and rarer the race, the higher their cultivation needs to be to change into human form. But the Mercenary Guild or any other power couldn't simply ignore a talent just because they haven't got a human form yet. So, there were special rules in place, where the powers would take responsibility for the demon beasts' actions until they got their human forms. Of course, they would also offer the necessary protection against some idiots trying to kill them for their body materials. Like that, they could also participate in the competitions. That Thunder Hawk just so happened to be one of those who needed to go beyond the Foundation Establishment to get his human form. And he wasn't the only one in this Selection!

A few other people and demon beasts also commented about what had happened but paid little attention to Krune or his friends. Except for one person, Arlan Rosier, another peak 9th Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. He was also from Makui Continent, and all Guild Heads believe that he would definitely get one of the five slots.

"Interesting!"

His friend, by his side, heard that and was surprised. He has rarely heard Arlan complimenting another cultivator, and a demon beast one at that.

"Did you see anything good about that Krune guy?"

Arlan didn't answer and went back to his seat among the elders of his continent. No one noticed, but a faint smile appeared on his face while he thought.

'This Mercenary Selection won't be as boring as I thought it seems.'

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Read Is that a Wisp? Chapter 81 Mercenary Selection Starts online for free - AllNovelFull

The night before the competition, Bary Casfiu came to talk with Krune's group. Although some people saw that, no one paid much attention. Still, he left a few minutes after. In the end, only the Yule Continent Contestants were a little puzzled. Of course, they couldn't simply go ask what it was about. Not to mention that Krune's group probably wouldn't tell them anyway.

The next day came fast. Soon the contestants were already close to the arenas prepared just for it. Each continent formed a group of their own and waited by the sides. All the Guild Heads came forward with their elders and took their position. It was then that a man came forward to announce the rules. Surprisingly, it was Bary Casfiu, the Yule Continent Guild Head.

"There is a total of 229 contestants for the five available slots. We will separate you into eight groups of thirty-two. Obviously, there aren't enough people for each group to have thirty-two participants. So some of you will receive a free pass to the next round. Luck is also part of one's strength, so we will draw lots to decide which Mercenarieswon't be battling in the first round. To make sure that the contestants with the highest chance of getting the five slots won't battle each other before the finals, we have decided on eight-seeded Mercenaries. Each one of them will be put in a different bracket."

He looked at everyone and then continue.

"To make sure that things like cultivators or demon beasts of the same continent going easy or losing on purpose won't happen, we separated the five continents contestants as best as possible, so that they will hardly fight people of their own continents. Of course, sooner or later, they will end fighting each other. But at least you won't need to be afraid of that happening in the first stages of the competition."

So far, it was pretty much as everyone thought.

"Additionally, after the victors of the eight brackets come out, they will battle every single winner of the other brackets. The five with the highest number of victories will be the representatives of the Mercenary Guild Alliance this time."

He then looked at some of the Mercenaries and said:

"The eight seeded mercenaries are:"

"Lina Jue, Makui Continent, First Arena."

"Rog Werer, Sky Fall Continent, Second Arena."

"Tasier, Borle Continent, Third Arena."

"Lofa Harcken, Ice Continent, Forth Arena."

"Arlan Rosier, Makui Continent, Fifth Arena."

"Shad Forgon, Sky Fall Continent, Sixth Arena."

"Jack Biurer, Ice Continent, Seventh Arena."

Bary then paused for a while and looked at a woman's direction.

"Yusa Shen, Yule Continent, Eighth Arena."

"Those are all the seeded players who are going to be put one in each of the eight groups. That's all for the seeded players. Now I will draw the names of those who are not fighting in the first round."

Everyone found it strange that Yusa, an 8th-Stage Foundation Establishment, got the Yule Continent Seed Slot. There were quite a few people in the Yule Continent side with cultivations at the peak of the 9th stage. But those who were the most confused were obviously the Yule Continent Contestants themselves. They knew that Krune was probably the strongest among them. Even if not him, it should have been Ao Sulian, at least. After all, they saw his strength first hand back in the Headquarters. So the decision of putting Yusa Shen as a seeded player puzzled them much.

Going back to the last night, Bary Casfiu had visited Krune's group to talk exactly about this issue. In the end, Krune and the others decided for Yusa to take the Seeded slot. Bary was taken aback with that decision, but then Ao explained.

"Between the three of us, Yusa has the lowest attack power. Her skills are more focused on support. Of course, she is very strong too, but for the three of us to get a better chance to enter the Martial Gathering together, it will be better to have her as a seeded player. I'm a lot more focused on attack, while Krune could be said to be all-rounded."

Yusa heard the last part and couldn't help but laugh.

"Can Krune even be considered a normal all rounded? He is overpowered in both attack, defense, and movement. I'm only a little better than him in support. That's because I mostly focus on it."

Shinja and Ao heard that and laughed as well. After so many spars between them, they had to admit that it was true. Shinja only had the advantage at the moment basically because of her much higher cultivation, and, even so, it wasn't easy to beat Krune.

Krune heard that and got a little embarrassed. He thought that maybe he should take it easier on Yusa and Ao the next time they sparred.

Bary Casfiu was taken aback. Their confidence in Krune was as high as it could be. But since they decided that it would be better to have him taking a regular role, he would follow their requests. Besides, if Krune couldn't even beat the seeded players of the Mercenary Selection, then we wouldn't even mention the Martial Gathering contestants.

After a few draws, the name of the people or demon beasts who got not to fight the first round was decided. Ao got lucky and was exempt from battling the first round. Krune and Yusa were not so lucky, so they would need to go forward with it. Perhaps Bary had done a great job with the contestants' position of the Yule Continent in the brackets. The three of them wouldn't get any seeded players, until they got close to the end, while Yusa avoided fighting the strongest one other than her in her bracket.

After everyone found out their groups, there were eight arenas. They gathered beside their own fighting stages and waited for the referees to come to make sure that no one would need to hold back. Each referee was at least in the Divine Soul Realm Early Stages. Only when a fatal move was about to connect would they move to stop it. The competition was performed in a Danger Zone because, sometimes, even a Divine Soul realm cultivator wouldn't be able to stop the fight in time. Because of that, there was still a chance of someone dying. They were all the best Mercenaries of the five continents, so their skills were obviously much higher than ordinary cultivators.

In case someone died, the Danger Zone rule would apply. The killer wouldn't be blamed, and no one would try to take revenge. It would, instead, be considered as idiotic. If you were participating in that competition and didn't even have the confidence to keep yourself alive, what did you come there for?

The eight referees from various continents took on the stages and called the name of the first Mercenaries. Krune's fight was the second one of his group, and he was part of the sixth arena. While Yusa was the fifth one to fight in the eighth arena, Ao wasn't going to fight in this round. He was part of the second arena.

Everyone's eyes were focused on the battle of the Fifth and First Arenas, because the seeded players of both were fighting in the first round.

In the first arena, Lina Jue was fighting a man from Borle Continent. Both of them were peak 9th-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators. Lina was a Fire and Lightning Element's user. As mentioned before, all cultivators and demon beasts could use any elements they wanted. Still, they would usually specialize in one or two while they were on lower realms. Her opponent was an Earth and Water user called Hao Foese.

Right from the start, Hao used Metal Element, a branch of the Earth Element, to strengthen his armor and spear tip. Only then, he charged forward. He knew that Lina was a seeded player, so he went all out from the very start. Unfortunately for him, Lina wasn't taking him seriously at all. Lina disappeared from his sight with a Lightning movement and appeared right above him. In both her hands, a fireball had appeared. The strange thing was that they had some sparks coming out. She was obviously able to merge fire and lightning together. Most impressive was the fact that she summoned those fire-thunder balls at the time she took to move above Hao.

Without any other choice, Hao could only switch his Water Element to Earth Element and use both Earth and Metal to try to resist the attack. After all, there was no time to dodge anymore. The two fire-thunder balls hit his body, and an enormous explosion could be heard. Hao couldn't take the attack. He was sent flying outside the arena, and Lina hold herself back, so Hao only got severely injured. As long as he received the right treatment, he would be fine.

In the Fifth arena, the battle was over even faster. Arlan was a Fire, Wind, and Lightning user. It was already impressive that he could control three elements at the same time. While still in the Foundation Establishment, one must remember that he didn't have Spiritual Energy Meridians like Ao and Yusa. That was proof of how talented he was.

He didn't even leave his spot. With a single Fire-Wind Slash of his sword, his opponent was already done for. The Divine Soul Referee even had to block the attack. Otherwise, Arlan's attack would have killed him. In the end, Arlan didn't even use his lightning element in that fight. One move and everything was done!

Krune saw that and couldn't help. He was surprised whether he didn't consider the wind element. Arlan's Fire Element control was at the same level as his. It was really impressive!

It was then that he received a Divine Sense message from Guild Head Bary.

"Did you see that? Arlan Rosier has a Pure Yang Body, his fire element control is far above any of the other contestants. He is the cultivator. Everyone thinks definitely to get one of the five slots."

Krune heard that and finally understood the reason. With Shinja's Pure Yin Body, she also had a Water Element control as good as his. It'd been even before she got her Spiritual Energy Meridians. So at that moment, he could understand why Arlan could do the same with fire, not to mention that he could feel it. Arlan's Divine Sense was very strong too. He definitely didn't lose to Yusa or Ao, so he probably had some way of training his soul as well. Although Soul Techniques were scarce in Makui Planet, it didn't mean they didn't exist.

But soon, Krune put this matter to the back of his mind. Arlan hasn't shown his real abilities yet, so there was no point in paying attention to it at that moment.

The other six arenas battle took a lot more time to finish. The competitors were fairly, even considering combat power. One of the battles, in the seventh arena, took over ten minutes to finish. Although there was a victor, the guy wasn't the least bit happy. He used a lot of his strength in the battle and received quite a few injuries. If his next opponent didn't go through the same problem, his chances of winning it were meager. Nonetheless, he immediately took some healing pills and started to recover.

The next round came, and it was finally Krune's time to fight. But other than the Yule Continent Mercenaries, no one was paying attention to him, because, in the third arena, there was another seeded contestant. It was the Thunder Hawk Tasier. His opponent was one of the Yule Continent Mercenaries. His name was Kaile Ford, a 9th-Stage Foundation Establishment who was also part of the Carnage Team that Turi Belane is the Leader.

Tasier was both Lightning and Wind element user, a pretty obvious combination for a Lightning Aerial Demon Beast like him. As soon as the battle started, Tasier took the skies and started to bombard Kaile from above with Lightning Element Attacks. Although the arena was closed by a protection formation, it was still very big and had a lot of aerial space. It was more than enough for him to show his abilities. Kaile immediately flew after him, but it wasn't long before he was utterly defeated. Though Foundation Establishment Cultivators could also fly, Kaile obviously couldn't match the Thunder Hawk. Tasier showed no mercy in his attacks, and the Divine Soul Realm Referee had to intervene to save Kalie's life.

In Krune's arena, he was looking at Tasier Battle. The problem was that he was doing that while battling his opponent, which made his adversary burst in rage. Krune wasn't paying attention to him at all. Unfortunately for him, Krune was too fast. It didn't matter what kind of attack he used, not a single hit, let alone hit. The moment he made an attack, Krune wouldn't be in the place where the attack was aimed at anymore.

Krune wasn't doing that on purpose. He was simply interested in the Thunder Hawk lightning element control. He wanted to check the difference between both of them. For such, he couldn't pay too much attention to his opponent. In the end, a scene where it looked like Krune was playing with his opponent started.

Only when the third arena battle was over, did Krune finally pay attention to the guy in front of him. But he kept dodging the attacks anyway. It was only when most of the battles were over that he finally made his move. He saw another attack coming his way and just sighed. Using the flaws in the attack itself, Krune launched some Blazing Wind Blades that sliced his opponent's attack as if they were made of paper. The blades didn't stop, and just as they were about to hit his opponents, they suddenly exploded.

His opponent was ready to resist the slashing effect of the blazing wind blades. He really didn't expect them to explode on his face, the blast shook wave sent him flying outside the arena. Just as he was about to hit the ground outside, he focused on his spiritual energy to stop mid-air. The shook wave of the explosions didn't do much damage. In the end, he was just about to fly back into the arena when, suddenly, several roots appeared on the ground and caught him before he could even react. He was pulled to the ground. The referee saw that he touched the ground outside the arena and announced Krune's victory.

Shad Forgon, the seeded Mercenary of the sixth arena, looked at that, and his face went dark. Krune showed an ability far above than he had expected. It was evident that he didn't take his fight seriously at all. He started to think that he might have found a dark horse. Worst of all, that dark horse just had to be in his group.

Krune came down from the arena and noticed the people on his group, and even those outside it were looking at him. That battle had made everyone acknowledge Krune was extremely strong, but Krune got puzzled instead.

'That doesn't make sense. I made sure to wait for the other battles to be over before finishing mine. I was planning to lay low until the end and then strike it hard. But how come I became the focus all of sudden?'

He's just forgotten to account for the fact that not only had it looked like he was purposely playing around with his opponent. He'd also controlled three different elements at the end of the battle. His cultivation was obviously at the 7th Stage of Foundation Establishment. It would be weird if no one paid attention to him instead.

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After Krune's battle was over, the contestants started to pay attention to him. The guilds higher-ups of the other continents also noticed his presence, especially Yulie Forgon, the Guild Head of the Sky Fall Continent Mercenary Guild. As one can already guess, Shad Forgon is his relative, a grandnephew to be more exactly, noticing Krune's strength made him apprehensive. He was pretty sure that his nephew would get a slot for the Martial Gathering. But now, with Krune there, even if he wins his bracket, Shad will be in poor condition to fight the last seven battles.

He then took a look at Guild Head Bary. He could see he was very calm as if this was totally inside of his expectations. He received the reports the Yule Continent had spread the news about finding a genius, but he totally disregarded such information. Yule Continent geniuses usually wouldn't make much of a difference when compared to theirs. But it seems like that time they really hit the jackpot.

The battles of the first round continued. Seed player after seed player entered the stage, and soon it was Shad Forgon's time in the Sixth arena.

As a place where it rains a lot, more than half of the cultivators of the Sky Fall Continent specialized in the water element. Shad Forgon wasn't different. At the same time, he could control two elements at the moment, Water and Lightning, a pretty standard combination in that place. He was obviously not a common user you could find anywhere since he was put as a seeded Mercenary.

His opponent was an Armored Bull Demon Beast called Houl from the Borle Continent, just like the Thunder Hawk.

The Borler Continent was basically a gigantic forest. At least half of its cultivators were demon beasts, so the Mercenary Headquarters had a lot of them every time a Mercenary Selection happened.

Houl charged at Shad as soon as the battle started. Through his control of earth and wood element, he usually tried to stop his opponent from getting away. His fort was close combat. After all, Shad noticed what he wanted to try but didn't try to flee. He took out his saber and engaged the bull head-on. At first, it looked like an even battle; but those with good perception could see that Shad was only playing around with the bull. He released some water and lightning every time their attacks encountered each other. It didn't seem like much, but that lightning slowly entered the bull's body and was destroying him from inside out.

The bull noticed that the situation wasn't good and tried to increase his defense power with the earth element. But it was of no use, because of the water element that was merged with the lightning; it found its way through the flaws on the defense of the bull. After some time, the bull's combat power started to deteriorate. In fact, if things continued like this, Houl would damage his foundation. So, in the end, he decided to admit defeat.

Shad didn't do anything else after that. Although his battle could be said to be the longest between the seeded players so far, the fact was that he used the smallest amount of spiritual energy between them. One could see that he was magnificent in the arena, only proving that a seeded contestant has a reason to be that.

It was finally time for the fifth round where Yusa would take part. She was the one that made a lot of people puzzled. After all, the Yule Continent could only select one-seeded Mercenary. It was basically due to the lesser number of Mercenaries participating in this Selection compared to the other Continents.

Her opponent was another woman from the Ice Continent called Mia Gessa, peak 9th-stage of Foundation Establishment, also a dual-element user. She specialized in Ice and Wind, quite an uncommon combination of elements.

Yusa, of course, didn't know that. Only after the battle started did she find out how unusual such combination was. Mia used the wind element in her movements to keep her distance while shooting several ice icicles and spears from all sides. It was a very annoying combination that trapped the opponent's movements. While doing a considerable amount of damage, her tactic was guerrilla warfare, a very strong combination at the end of the day.

Unfortunately for her, she encountered Yusa. None of her attacks could get even close. The water dragons defense that Yusa kept around her worked as an impregnable fortress. The impressive thing was that the exterior of the water dragons was made of segments of ice; the ice made their armors while the water controlled their segments and heads' movements, Yusa's ice element control was much higher than Mia. So, while Mia's attacks shattered against the water ice dragons, the dragons themselves suffered almost no damage what so ever.

Mia saw her tactics wouldn't work. And she was only wasting her energy. She switched from several small random attacks to more powerful ice attacks. She saw that Yusa basically wasn't moving away from her place, and she wanted to break through the dragon's defense using brute force. But, in the end, it was useless. The difference between the control of their ice elements was just too big. Yusa's water ice dragons sturdiness was simply much better than any of Mia's attacks. After a few minutes of tries, Mia finally gave up and waited to see what Yusa would do.

Yusa looked at Mia and smiled.

"That was a fascinating use of wind and ice. I've never seen that before! If it weren't me, I believe you would have a good chance of getting a good position in this Selection."

Mia heard that and frowned.

"You can't beat me if you don't attack either. Can you even hit me at all?"

Yusa just kept smiling. She felt a little sad she had to eliminate one of the few women in this Selection, but there was no other choice. So she sighed and pointed her hand forward.

Immediately, an enormous water prison that covered almost one-fourth of the arena appeared. The area it covered was so big that even with her wind element movement, Mia didn't have time to escape before being trapped inside. But if she was fast enough, it would be useless, because Yusa could that moment move the water prison around as she liked. Mia then tried to use her Ice element to create a barrier around her body. She didn't expect to receive an electric shock even before she could concentrate. Yusa might best at support, but it doesn't mean that her attacks were weak at all!

It took only a few seconds for Mia finally lost consciousness inside the gigantic water prison. All of that happened while she was still controlling the Water Ice Dragons around her. It finally downed to everyone that the Yule Continent Seeded contestant wasn't weak at all. Yusa could also control three elements simultaneously, and she was obviously extremely proficient at that.

The referee had no need to take action. He could see that Yusa wasn't planning to really hurt the other girl after Mia passed out. The water prison was released, and the person taking care of the cultivators' injuries entered the arena. They soon noticed that Mia was excellent and just needed some rest. Then, they took her out, and the referee announced Yusa's victory.

Yusa was the only seeded mercenary fighting in this round. Thus, the other seed mercenaries paid a lot of attention to her. Some of them were relieved she was selected as a seed contestant. They definitely wouldn't want to battle someone like that before the eight winners were decided. Krune and Ao watched everything and just smiled. No one knew Yusa's power better than them! Her victory was assured the moment they noticed Mia's combat power.

Yusa came down from the arena, sighing.

'If it were Krune, he would simply use my water prison to take a bath. Because of his practice with the Tribulation Lightning, normal lightning attacks could barely do anything to him at that moment. That was considering I could catch him inside my prison at all. that dammed lightning movement fused with some tribulation lightning was just too fast!'

'As for Ao, I reckon that he would slice my prison in half with brute force. Well, at least he can't break my defense easily, so it's always hard to say which of the two of us would win in the end.'

She found Mia's attacks interesting. That combination of ice and wind wasn't something you saw every day, but that was all. She hadn't felt the least bit of danger from start to finish.

The battle continued. No seeded players had lost in the end. But Krune wasn't the only dark horse so far; there were another two who stood out. A cultivator, called Deno Baril from the Sky Fall continent, was in the Third Arena, much for Tasier's dissatisfaction. The other was a Water Dragon called Drorne, from the Ice Continent, who was in the First Arena. Just like the Earth Dragon Krune fought in the past, that Water Dragon also wasn't a real dragon but had a good concentration of dragon blood in its body.

After the first round was over, the Mercenaries got two hours to rest. The second round would continue after that. Krune noticed he had quite some time free, so he called the others over.

"It's almost lunchtime anyway, so I'm going to make some food, you guys want some?"

They immediately nodded. Except for watching the seed mercenaries' battles, they were pretty much bored. So, eating and drinking something would help improve their moods.

Another wave of fragrant food appeared somewhere close to the arenas. The Yule Continent people didn't even think twice and asked if they could join as well. They were willing to pay for the ingredients used. Krune just shook his head and told them to help organize the tables instead. Surprisingly, Bary Casfiu came over to join the fun. He simply didn't care about his status anymore. Making sure to have a good relationship with Krune and the others was his number-one priority after what he saw in the first round.

While a lot of cultivators spent their time concentrated for the next round, the Yule Continents contestants and even those who lost already chatted and ate happily. It could also be said to be a way of releasing their stress as well, or maybe an attack at their opponents. They could feel quite a few jealous eyes fixed on them, but those outside didn't dare to ask for food anymore. Otherwise, their guild higher-ups would rebuke them once again.

Almost two hours had passed. Krune and everyone else was back to the side of their arenas. Except for Krune's group, which hasn't felt any tension so far, the rest of them felt a lot more relaxed. It was also shown during their own battles; surprisingly, even Turi Belane had joined the feast before. After noticing that neither Krune nor Ao seemed to take his previous actions to heart, his worries disappeared, and he performed much better. He could even defeat his opponent whose people thought to be stronger than him, and like that, advancing to the third round.

The battle in the second arena finally started again, and that time, Ao would be fighting. He got the first battle of the second arena; on top of that, his opponent was a cultivator from the Makui Continent. His name was Pesque Kaen, specialized in Fire and Earth elements.

Pesque was feeling very lucky. Yule Continent is known for most of the times to have the weakest cultivators in the Mercenary Selection. Since two dark horses have already appeared in the sixth and eighth arenas, how could there be another one here in the second? He thought only Ao was present in the second round due to his luck to be exempt from the first-round battles.

Unfortunately for him, he just had to encounter Ao Sulian at that time.

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The referee confirmed that both of them were ready, and the battle started. Pesque was very confident in himself, so he didn't charge at Ao straight away. He focused on his Earth and Fire elements to create some kind of lava chains. It was quite ingenious: he used his spiritual energy to keep the connection between the segments. It was also the spiritual energy and his Divine Sense that controlled them. Impressively, he could control several of them like tentacles. Some were used for defense, while others for attack. Only after he finished setting them up did he started to slowly walk in Ao's direction.

"You can give up now, you know? There is no need to get hurt for a hopeless battle."

He then noticed that Ao didn't seem the least bit impressed with that skill, which ruined his mood quite a bit. It didn't seem Ao was going to give up anytime soon. In fact, Ao wasn't even paying attention to him.

"Since that's the case, don't blame me for not being polite."

That time, he charged forward without care. He didn't believe Ao would be able to do anything to him after all. Suddenly, Ao's face turned serious.

"He! You finally noticed the danger, too late, though."

On the other side, Ao was having an extremely important Divine Sense conversation with Yusa and Krune. That conversation had started after they finished their lunch.

"It's like, I said, you should put a little more salt in my meat. I like it saltier."

Krune shook his head.

"That would ruin the seasoning I made. You can't do that with my food."

Yusa then intervened.

"That's the part where you are wrong. It might taste worse for you, but for Ao, it might, in fact, taste better. You need to understand that not everyone has the same tastes."

Ao, who was dodging the attack as if they didn't exist, continued his argument with Krune. Krune was very stubborn about the food he prepared.

Finally, Krune let it go. He would make the next meals the same as always. It was just that he wouldn't care anymore if Ao put anything else on it after it was done. However, on the condition that he wouldn't waste anything if it turned out not to be good.

After over ten minutes of 'battle,' Ao finally got a happy face. He then turned to Pesque, who was panting and sweating all over.

"Oh, right, I was supposed to battle you. Sorry for the delay, I will finish it in a second."

Pesque thought Ao was making fun of the fact he couldn't catch him with his attacks. Just as he was about to retort and say that Ao couldn't do anything to him either, Ao raised his swords and made a slashing movement. Right at that moment, someone appeared in front of Pesque.

Pesque was alarmed because he didn't know from where those guys had come from. Only after he jumped back in a fright, did he take a good look at who it was. It turns out that no other than the referee, who puzzled Pesque greatly. Why did the Divine Soul Referee appear out of nowhere in front of him? What really made his head spin was the referee's next words.

"Ao Sulian wins."

Pesque thought it was some kind of joke.

"He won? What are you talking about? He didn't make anything at all. Why did I lose?"

The referee just gave him a side glance and commented.

"Ask that again after you take a look at your lava chains."

Only then did Pesque stop to pay attention to his surroundings. His lava chains… disappeared, or to be more exact, they were all over the ground. Hundreds of small puddles of lava could be seen around Pesque.

He was taken aback. When did his lava chains become like that?

The answer was in the slash Ao made a moment ago. It was a fusion of the Metal Element Sharpness and the Wind Element Swiftness. Even the seeded mercenaries got quite impressed with that attack. It was really fast and deadly. But that was all they thought, with exception for Arlan and a few of the Divine Soul cultivators.

'Was that sword intent?'

In fact, the few who perceived it weren't sure either since it was very subtle. In the end, they made a mental note to pay attention to Ao's next fight to check whether they were right or wrong.

Arlan smiled again. He couldn't help but think how strange it was for three dark horses to appear in the Yule Continent at the same time. The Mercenary Selection, which looked so obvious before, had suddenly become impossible to predict, and Arlan was very happy with that.

Ao came down from the arena and seemed to be in a very good mood. Everyone who looked at that thought it was because he got his first victory in the Mercenary Selection. Little did they know he was happy simply because Krune agreed to let him use more salt in his food. Compared to that, what a simple victory against Pesque could amount for?

The battle continued. Seed players came and went. None of them had lost so far. Krune and Yusa passed through their opponents with ease as well. It was only in the third round that an exciting battle took place. It was Tasier against the dark horse from the Sky Fall Continent, Deno Baril.

Tasier used his same strategy as before. He immediately took off and bombarded Deno from high above. But Deno was an earth and wood element cultivator, the best element to use against a lightning specialized demon beast like the Thunder Hawk. He didn't pursue the thunder hawk, he just used his techniques to defend against all the Hawk's attacks. After around a minute of battle, Tasier noticed that things weren't good on his side. Deno could defend against anything he sent down while using a lot less spiritual energy.

"Hmph! You asked for it."

Tasier wings started to shine. If people looked closely, they would be able to see an enormous amount of lightning element, and spiritual energy began to accumulate inside Tasier's feathers. Not only that, but they also looked like to have turned into metal. After enough energy was accumulated, Tasier charged down.

"Don't think that I'm like any normal Thunder Hawk. I can also control three elements."

It was true. Lightning and Wind were a must-have element for Thunder Hawks, and very easy to specialize too in their case. But Tasier could also control the metal element, using the lightning element in his feathers for speed, wind element for swiftness and maneuvers, and metal element for sharpness. In an instant, Tasier turned from a ranged attacker into a close combat meat slicer.

Deno noticed the change and that Tasier wouldn't work anymore on his plans of worn-out. Initially, he would wait for Tasier to run out of steam and only then would start his assault. But the Thunder Hawk noticed that and changed its tactics. Deno then switched from defense to attack as well. The Thunder Hawk might be confident in its attack power, but so is himself, he immediately took out his spear and met the Hawk head-on.

And just like that, the two started to exchange blow after blow. The Hawk had the advantage in speed while Deno exceeded in attack power. It was hard to say which one of them would end up as the victor. But, as one of the seeded players, the Hawk wasn't to be trifled with the lightning element being used for speed. A second after it, it started to discharge a tremendous amount of lightning attacks every time both exchanged blows.

The balance was finally broken, and Deno started to receive several injuries. His face didn't show any fear, it seemed like he was waiting for something. The Hawk and Deno were about to exchange another blow when, suddenly, hundreds of roots came from the ground and tried to bind Tasier. Noticing he couldn't dodge, Tasier decided to slash through all the roots. He refused to believe they could resist the power of his wings.

Deno saw that and smiled. This was his chance! He immediately focused all the power of his spiritual energy on the tip of his spear. He aimed the attack at the belly of the Hawk. As long as it connected, there would be no way for the Hawk to leave unscratched.

"He-he! Aren't you a sly one?"

Deno's eyes widened. His spear was just about to hit the hawks belly, when, suddenly, it passed through it. Instead of the blood and flesh, the Hawk's body transformed into a sea of lightning that attacked Deno from all sides. With nowhere to run, Deno could only do his best to defend against the lightning attack. Unfortunately, the Hawk's real body appeared right behind. As long as the wings connected, Deno would be cut in half. But the Hawk didn't have the chance, because the referee intervened just in the nick of time.

The thunder hawk seemed displeased that the referee stopped his attack. But there was nothing more to do. It retracted the metal power from its wings, and the lightning element around its body disappeared. It then flew back to his waiting place and closed its eyes. That battle, at that moment, had really forced it to use a lot of its spiritual energy, and it had to show even its trump cards prematurely. It really pissed off the Thunder Hawk Tasier.

As for Deno, he came down from the arena with a gloomy face, although the injuries on his body hurt quite a bit. It wasn't as annoying as having his chance of entering the Martial Gathering disappearing here. Yulie Forgon came forward and gave him some encouraging words. He didn't expect this dark horse would appear in his Sky Fall Continent. Although his chance to participate in the Martial Gathering was gone, he would still become one of the Sky Fall Mercenary Guild pillars in the future.

However, Deno hasn't given up yet. He wanted to go further: to leave the Makui Planet. The Divine Path Sect was the opportunity he was waiting for since he couldn't participate in it through the Foundation Establishment selection. He would then attempt to enter the Core Formation Realm. He was under forty years old, after all. He just thought that with the Divine Path Sect heritage, it would be a lot safer to do that in the sect. Since it was not possible anymore, then there was nothing to hold back. Deno had made his mind. Even if what was waiting for him was death through the Heavenly Tribulation, he would not regret it.

The seeded mercenaries who watched the previous battle understood the Tasier wasn't just some headless demon beast that only knew how to attack. Most of them hadn't even noticed when his real body separated from the lightning copy. But that was to be expected. Anyone who had come that far would definitely have one or two trump cards in their pockets, and they still had their own confidence in getting one of the five slots.

Krune's group saw the battle too, and Ao commented.

"That Hawk is very strong. Even with my Sword Intent, I'm not completely sure that I can defeat it without paying some price."

Yusa nodded her head.

"My lightning element would be useless against it too. Although I'm confident that I wouldn't lose, I can't say that I would win for sure either. I guess only Krune would be able to beat it with certainty."

Krune then shook his head.

"It's true I believe I'm stronger than it. But it might still have some skills that it hasn't shown yet. If I was not careful, I might be caught off guard. But in the end, the most dangerous person in this selection is definitely that Arlan guy. But we don't need to care about that for the moment. After all, we just need to get one of the five slots, as for which position we finish at, that doesn't matter."

Ao and Yusa nodded. They also had the same thought. A battle against Arlan wasn't totally necessary in the end.

Report chapter

After the third round, the first day of the Mercenary Selection came to an end, because quite a few people had used a lot of spiritual energy, while others not so much. Also, from the next day onwards, people from the same continent will start fighting each other. There were continents like Makui, which had the most of the participants. At the same time, there were others like Yule Continent, which had less, so it was unavoidable to get this conclusion. Although the guilds didn't want to see guild members of the same continent giving up or going easy on their opponents, there was nothing else to be done anymore.

It could, in fact, be a good thing now. Those with a real chance of advancing would get further, while those who know that they aren't capable enough would stay. Yule Continent was the only one, which didn't have that luxury. From the twenty-seven participants, who came this time around, only six remained in the end, and none of them were in the same group. Turi Belane, who had challenged Ao back then, was also in this group.

It was late at night, and Yulie Forgon was just back inside his residence. Someone of his level could easily buy a spatial ring big enough to fit a house inside, and that is the one he was using there that moment. Someone coming that moment would be able to see a cold light in his eyes. Krune's prowess had thrown his plans in disarray. If things continued like that, it would be very difficult for his nephew to get one of the five slots for the top five contestants.

"You can't blame me for it! Blame your luck to end into the same group as my nephew."

Yulie changed in some black clothes and silently left his house. He had to get rid of Krune as soon as possible. Otherwise, his nephew wouldn't be able to pass through the last phase of the selection, and maybe he would even lose to Krune before getting the chance to try that phase.

Krune's group was gathered close to the place where the elders of the Yule Continent were staying. It was very rare to have someone trying something against the top contestants, so no one was paying too much attention. The elders and guild head Bary were all cultivating or doing their own things. Krune was discussing with his friend how they should proceed after winning their brackets.

"I think we don't need to show much of our capabilities just yet. From what I've seen so far, except for Arlan, I don't think we would have problems with the other mercenaries", said Yusa while thinking about the general situation.

Ao shook his head.

"The mercenary guild is one of the big powers of the world. The members of the guild are between the top of those who are going to fight for the ten slots of the Divine Path Sect entrance exam. We could fight him instead so that we can have a better idea of what to expect during the Martial Gathering."

Krune nodded after hearing that.

"It indeed makes sense. Undoubtedly Arlan is one of the best at the moment, even between all the powers. It is better to do that to understand our futures opponents."

He then looked at Yusa and Ao.

"But we don't need the three of us to do this. In that case, who will fight him? I don't believe any of us would be in any great danger; at most, we can just admit defeat if we see that the victory's price is too great."

Ao immediately raised his hand.

"I want to try. He is a Sword user just like me. It will be very convenient for my training. Between the three of us, the only one who uses a sword is myself, so I have the confidence of keeping myself safe."

Krune and Yusa nodded. They had confidence not only on themselves but in their team members too. Ao was not the type to take unnecessary risks either if he said he could deal with it. Then he definitely had that confidence.

Outside Krune's place, a shadow approached without anyone noticing. It was none other than Yulie Forgon. After checking where the participants of the Yule Continent were, he spread his Divine Sense just enough to cover the place. If he alerted any of the Yule Continent elders, he would need to retreat immediately. He had to kill Krune before anything else. The best case would be to kill him without alerting anyone.

Inside Krune's room, little light suddenly woke up.

"Krune, someone is using Divine Sense to look for you. From what I can sense, it seems like this person doesn't have any good intentions."

Krune was still talking with Ao and Yusa when he heard that message. He immediately got up.

"How strong?"

"Definitely in the Divine Soul Realm, probably late stages. I can feel its killing intent. He is here for an assassination attempt and has already locked his Divine Sense on you."

Yusa and Ao didn't understand what was going on. But looking at Krune's face, it was obvious that something happened. Krune immediately reached his chest and smashed the jewel that was attached to a collar on it.

Inside the place where the elders of the Mercenary Guild were staying, Bary was cultivating beside his father. Suddenly, the jewel on a bracelet he was using cracked. Both Lian Casfiu and he noticed that and immediately understood what was happening.

Lian was close by. The main reason for him being there was especially to protect Krune. He spread his Divine Sense and disappeared the next instant. He quickly found the assassin, but he couldn't determine who he or she was. The clothes the person was using had formations protecting against Divine Sense from passing through.

Lian Casfiu was one of the very few cultivators in the Makui Planet in the Soul Forging Realm, so Yulie obviously couldn't feel the moment Lian's Divine Sense scanned him. But he still found out that someone had discovered his location. He had his robe to thanks for that. It was the spiritual equipment that blocked Divine Sense. But it was exactly this ability that allowed Yulie to find out that someone tried to check him. The fact that he couldn't detect who scanned his body proved that the person was several times stronger than him.

"It's that dammed Lian Casfiu. Only he has a realm higher enough for me not to notice his Divine Sense."

Seeing that it was impossible to Kill Krune anymore, Yulie immediately decided to retreat. It was then that he heard a voice coming from his side:

"Leaving already? You have just arrived! Why don't you come in for us to drink some tea and have a little chat?"

Yulie was alarmed. He didn't expect Lian would appear there so fast. He immediately activated his movement technique and tried to flee. However, he noticed that the space around him suddenly became like a sea of water, but it wasn't at the same time. This definitely wasn't a spiritual energy skill. The Sky Fall Continent Mercenary Headquarters also had Soul Forging Realm cultivators, and two of them, to be more exact. So he knew very well what it was slowing him down so much.

"Domain!"

Domain was an ability that only those in the Soul Forging Realm and above could use. They could bring forth this ability due to their understanding of the space. It was one of the main reasons why Divine Soul Cultivators were no match for Soul Forging Cultivator. Not to mention the difference in their realms alone.

"Now then, you've just arrived. If I let you come and go as you please, where would my face go? There is no need to worry. I will take care of you."

Noticing that the situation wasn't good, Yulie bit his tongue and activated a blood escaping technique. He also took a Runestone Formation from his spatial ring, which he had already left charged, and activated. The escape technique allowed him to achieve the speed of an early-stage Soul Forging realm. At the same time, the Runestone formation diminished the power of the domain blocking him.

"Hmph! You aren't going anywhere."

Just as Lian was about to catch him, Yulie used another secret technique. His cultivation suddenly started to fall, from the 9th stage to the 8th, and then to the 7th. However, his speed, which was already very high due to the blood escaping technique, increased even more. Soon, he left the area where Lian's Domain was in effect. Lian looked at that and couldn't help but sigh.

"He was willing to sacrifice this much just so that I couldn't find his real identity. Not that it is too hard to guess who it was anyway! But without capturing him, I won't be able to prove anything."

Back in the Krune's room, Bary had appeared just instants ago, when he showed his presence. Little light told Krune that the assassin had fled. Krune finally let out a sigh of relief.

Bary was with his Divine Sense fully spread and ready to take Krune away at a moment's notice. The other elders of the guild and even the elders of the other continents nearby noticed his Divine Sense and came out to check what was happening. Not long after, Lian Casfiu came back to check on Krune. Seeing that everything was okay, he left the aftermath for Bary to take care of.

"Don't worry, father, leave it to me."

Lian nodded and then disappeared the next second. He had already told Bary through Divine Sense about everything that had happened. Bary then looked at Krune and told him.

"The assassin escaped, but he had to pay an enormous price to do so. Whoever it was, he or she definitely won't try anything against you anytime soon."

Krune nodded.

"Does Guild Head Bary know whether any of the contestants received an attempt of assassination?"

Guild Head Bary heard that and immediately understood where Krune was coming from.

"Give me a second, I will check."

Bary then spread his Divine Sense once more and talked with the elders of the other guilds. Realizing that someone tried to assassinate a member of the Yule Continent during the Mercenary Selection immediately alerted everyone. The elder of all guilds made a quick check on their members and told Bary their members were fine. Bary then told the same to Krune.

"I see! Then it's not hard to guess the culprit. The mercenary selection has five slots for the Martial Gathering. It would make no sense to attack me. The best is to kill some of the other seeded mercenaries since they still don't know how strong I am. But this assassin wouldn't do that, which proves that the threat he is feeling is related to the group bracket I'm in. If we look into the combat power of the contestants remaining inside my bracket, only two possible contestants can make it to the final phase, I and Shad Forgon. This moment, everyone still thinks that Shad Forgon is most likely to be the final winner in my group. But this person still chose to come after me, which means that he wants to help Shad instead."

Krune's face then darkened.

"It can only be one of the Divine Soul Realms of the Sky Fall Continent, or at the very least, someone related to them. They wanted to guarantee that Shad would be the winner of my group and that he wouldn't be too worn out on top of that. My presence in Shad's group had destroyed their plans, thus, this assassination attempt!"

Bary nodded. He and his father had already got to the same conclusion.

"In that case, let's have Shad Forgon to sign a blood contract and confess what he knows."

Krune shook his head.

"It will turn out to be useless. Whoever did it, definitely hasn't told Shad about the operation, exactly because he can't get rid of a blood contract like a Divine Soul Realm cultivator can. At most, he would have some assumptions, but that would not be considered as proof of anything. It was also because of this that the one who came was a Divine Soul Cultivator. After all, blood contracts can't bind them."

Bary couldn't help but agree with Krune. It would have been a very idiotic action to tell Shad about what was going to happen and then spill out the truth through a blood contract.

"Then let it be! In the end, this was their only chance. Tomorrow we will have the last three battles of the group brackets. Whether you lose or win to Shad doesn't matter anymore. They won't be able to stop you from competing."

Bary let out a sigh and then said:

"My father will keep a look, for the time being, so you can rest until tomorrow. I'll come back at around nine o'clock to take you there."

Krune nodded and saw Bary off. But before leaving, he left another of those jewels that Krune used to alert them. Bary also wanted to ask how Krune found out about the assassin but decided not to ask. In the end, it probably had to do with some of Krune's secrets, after all. When Krune returned, he could see that Yusa and Ao were full of questions. Krune had used the Divine Sense to talk with Bary during the whole time. So they didn't know what was happening.

"It goes like this…"

Yusa and Ao faces' darkened. The worst of all was that the side who tried to do that was extremely obvious, but they couldn't do anything about that.

"Let it be! It's just as guild head, Bary said. This was their only chance. From tomorrow onwards, any new attempt would be just a fool's action."

Yusa and Ao nodded and then left a little later to go back to their room.

Krune sat on the bed and just sighed.

"That's what happens when you give up your low profile life."

He shook his head and went back to cultivate. He is almost at the 8th stage now.

Report chapter

Later that night, Yulie Forgon finally sneaked back into his house. His face was pale, and he coughed several mouths full of blood. He was obviously in great pain, but he seemed not to notice anything at all. One could only see some helplessness in his eyes. Hundreds of years of his cultivation disappeared just like that. The secret art ate it away in exchange for a boost in speed, not to mention that the blood escape technique severely damaged his foundation as well. If he got unlucky, he might fall one or two more stages before finally stabilizing again.

But as the Guild Head, he soon calmed himself and focused on his recovery. The Selection would continue in a few hours. Everyone probably is guessing he had something to do with this assassination attempt. But if he suddenly disappeared right after, it would only get worse. At this point, the Yule Continent Guild Head had probably told all the other guilds that the culprit paid a very high price to escape. So he can't disappear now, even if he wanted!

The thing that made him angry was that Bary Casfiu was right. It was his only chance to get rid of Krune. After the Selection starts again, it won't stop until the eight victors are decided. And there is no way Lian Casfiu will lower his guard now. His Sky Fall Continent hasn't brought any Soul Forging cultivators this time around. And even if they had, he couldn't possibly ask for them to kill a junior of another continent guild at this point.

In the end, Yulie only sighed. His nephew is already 37 years old, so he won't be able to fight another Martial Gathering anymore. He can only rely on himself to pass this Hurdle.

The sun came up, and the cultivators started to emerge from their rooms when it was finally nine o'clock. Bary came to fetch Krune. As expected, nothing else happened after that. People began to gather around their own arenas, and those who had already lost were also there to see the outcome of the battles. The elder took their sits and chatted while waiting for the battles to start. However, there was something different today. Quite a few people were looking in the direction of the Sky Fall Continent seats. Although no proof could be found, it was pretty obvious which continent was behind what happened last night.

That time Yulie Forgon also appeared around and sat on his place. Although his seat didn't look too well, he did his best to pretend nothing was wrong, Bary saw that and chuckled.

"Guild Head Yulie doesn't look fine. Could it be that something happened last night?"

Yulie heard that and felt like he'd eaten a fly. But nothing could be seen on his face. He just smiled and looked back at Bary.

"I had some problems with cultivation last night, nothing too serious."

Bary heard that and laughed.

"That is normal. We all run into unexpected problems now and then. I wish Guild Head Yulie recovery to be smooth."

As unwilling as Yulie could be, he still politely replied.

"Then, I thank Guild Head Bary for your concern."

The other elder and guild heads saw that and just snorted. They could feel how bad Yulie's injuries were, but that had nothing to do with them. They were just curious as to what the battle between Krune and Shad Forgon would turn out to be today.

On the stages, the cultivators from Sky Fall Continent had ugly faces. Although they had nothing to do with what had happened last night, it still didn't change the fact that they were part of the same people. They wanted to retort, but because no one was saying anything and were just looking at them, there was nothing to retort for. So they simply decided to focus on the battles for that moment.

One of the referees came forward and announced the start of the battles.

"Everyone who hasn't fallen yet, stay ready! Those who had lost already, stay further away from the arenas! The Selection will continue now. The first stage, Drorne vs. Lina Jue, the second stage…"

Immediately, all the attention was grabbed by the first arena. Drorne was the other Dark Horse of this competition, and he was finally challenging the seeded mercenary of that stage, Lina Jue. The battle between Deno and Tasier was very interesting. Everyone was expecting to see the same type of battle at that time as well. Yusa just so happened to be fighting the first battle of the eighth arena too, but her opponent wasn't one that people thought she could lose against. So no one was paying too much attention to that.

Drorne, as a water dragon, was obviously specialized in water first.'' Lina, as for the second element, he had opted for earth to help cover the water dragon weakness for lightning. He could have chosen lightning, but as his race weakness, he would have had a hard time to specialize in it. It would have been a huge time consumer, so he didn't do so.

Lina, as mentioned before, is a Fire and Lightning element user. She had watched the water dragon battles and knew that thanks to its earth element, lightning alone wasn't that dangerous for it as she hoped for. And her fire element just so happened to be weaker against his water element. However, as one of the seeded contestants, Lina had the confidence to fight even in odd conditions, so she wasn't the least bit afraid.

The battle started, and the water dragon immediately used the earth element to fortify his body against the lightning element. After that, he rushed forward, like a dragon. Close combat was obviously his best style while moving forward. He shot forward hundreds of water balls the side of candy, but the sheer amount [was enough to cover any retreat path. Although each one wasn't that strong, when so much hit you simultaneously, you would still feel suffocated.

Lina was already expecting that and created a fire armor around herself. That was the first time people saw her using that, but she didn't give them time to pay attention. Using the lightning movement, Lina dashed forward as well and took out two chakrams. That was also her first time using her weapons. Those chakrams were made of a material compatible with both fire and lightning, so she could use her specialized elements while attacking with them. The chakrams were charged with her lightning and fire and were shot forward in two different directions.

Drorne saw that and knew he couldn't underestimate those weapons. He immediately used his claws and tail to fend off their attacks, but those were two flying-type weapons. Right after being deflected, they charged back again. Of course, the amount of fire and lightning inside them would diminish after every hit. It was enough for three or four attacks before they would need to go back to Lina to be charged again.

But Lina wasn't just looking while the weapons she controlled attacked the water dragon. She immediately used the thunder line skill, the same Krune had used back in the Rainbow Sect Gate. The difference was that it also had the fire element on it. The fire element might be weaker against the water dragon. Still, it didn't mean that it was useless, not to mention when used by a top tier cultivator like Lina.

The water dragon wasn't to be trifled with either. Noticing that he was going to get hit by Lina's attack while defending against the chakrams, he stomped its legs on the ground. Right after, a thick earth wall appeared right in front of the thunder line attack. The attack hit the earth wall and was reduced to rubble, but that was enough to stop it. The water dragon used the fact it was behind the earth wall at first to create a water prison. Drorne was expecting that since Lina couldn't see him, she wouldn't notice him using the prison.

However, Lina wasn't a seeded player for nothing. Although she couldn't see what the dragon would do for a moment, she knew that the earth wall was probably used for concealing something. As soon as it appeared, she used her lightning movement again and charged to the sides, as expected. A second after she left, an enormous water prison appeared just where she had been a moment ago. Although it wasn't as big as Yusa's one, it was still big enough to be a threat in case you didn't leave the place in time.

The chakrams came back to Lina once more. Their Fire and Lightning elements were totally used, so she had to charge them again. Flying weapons also needed spiritual energy to stay in the air, and, each time they exchanged blows with the dragon, a huge amount of it was used. But that wasn't a problem for Lina. It only took her two seconds to recharge and send them out once more. It went to show how familiar she was with her weapons, not to mention its high compatibility with her chosen elements.

The water dragon was very calm. Lina's attacks were full of power and could cause serious damage, even with his earth element protection, but they also used huge amounts of spiritual energy. Drorne was very confident in his endurance. If things continued like that, he would be the final victor.

Lina also noticed that problem, but she just chuckled while thinking.

'If you think my reservoir of spiritual energy is the same as the other mercenaries in this selection, you will come to know that I'm quite different from the norm.'

It was true. The main reason why Lina focused on powerful attacks was that her cultivation technique was focused on her amount of spiritual energy and the spiritual energy recovery over the battle. In that Selection, probably only Krune had a rate of spiritual energy recovery higher than Lina during the battle.

The battle continued, and blow after blow was exchanged. Sometimes the water dragon was hit, others, Lina was the one to receive some kind of injury. The water dragon's confidence started to disappear, it didn't matter how many attacks Lina used. Her spiritual energy seemed to stay at the peak all the time, as if she had an unlimited supply.

Knowing that he had hit a metal wall, Drorne changed his tactics. He could only focus more on pursuing Lina while ignoring some of her attacks. Otherwise, the one who would have run out of spiritual energy. In the end, it would have been him.

Lina saw that and started to laugh. She was waiting for the dragon to do that and waited for a moment when its guard would be low and mounted a sneak attack. She concentrated her spiritual energy on her hands and prepared to use one of her trump cards. It didn't take long for the moment to come. As soon as the opening appeared, she attacked straight away.

"Thunder-Fire Explosion!"

Her hands touched the side of the water dragon's body, and an enormous explosion could be heard. The water dragon's body was sent flying. She saw that and thought it was finally over, but it was then she heard a voice behind her:

"Gotcha!"

Lina was alarmed! She immediately tried to use her lightning movement to flee, but it was too late.

Drorne had somehow appeared right behind her. He opened his mouth and shot a water attack straight at her back.

"Dragon Water Cannon!"

Lina could only close her eyes and do her best to reinforce her fire armor, but water was the weakness of fire abilities. Although it reduced some of the damage at first, she was still sent flying while coughing some blood. Drorne didn't let the chance go and pounced at Lina the moment the attack hit her back. Just as its claws were about to pierce her chest, his body suddenly stopped mid-air, it didn't matter how much Drorne wanted to move. He couldn't advance even a centimeter forward, but he soon realized why was that. Lina was a foundation establishment cultivator just like himself. There was no way she could have such power, meaning that the one who stopped him could only be the referee!

Lina didn't move, she had lost consciousness in that last attack. That was the reason why the referee stopped Drorne. The water dragon noticed that as well and finally calmed down. The power that bound it also disappeared after that. The referee came forward and proclaimed:

"Water Dragon Drorne Wins!"

Everyone was taken aback with that fight. Looking at the dragon's body that had been hit by Lina's Thunder Fire Explosion, they noticed that it had turned into a pool of water. Tasier looked at that and narrowed his eyes. It was the same technique as his lightning replacement, just that it used water. The incredible thing was that Drorne was able to trick Lina with his enormous body, but the trick behind it was a skill t Yusa knew very well. Water frame! Drorne used that skill only once during the battle, and it was right before Lina charged over to attack. In the end, the dragon which showed that opening wasn't the real Drorne to start with.

The people of the Makui Continent were disappointed. While the Ice Continent people were cheering, Drorne was a water dragon from their continent after all. No one expected he would win, which means that they would have one more contestant to fight for the five slots in the final phase.

In Yusa's arena, the battle was over a long time ago. Her opponent had received quite a few injuries during the last-day battles, and they hadn't fully recovered yet. Even if they had, he wasn't Yusa's match to start with, so Yusa was able to finish it quickly. She took that chance to watch the battle between Lina and Drorne, and when the battle was over, she sent a Divine Sense message to Krune.

"I think I understand the principle of that water replacement. I will try to master it before the Martial Gathering."

Krune heard that and nodded.

"It's not that hard, it is simply using the water element to make a water copy. As for why the body looks like a real dragon, that is just a mirage caused by the light control with the spiritual energy left behind in the copy. Also, the other element replacements might not be exactly like that, but they follow the same principle."

Yusa heard that and got curious.

"Does it mean you can use it?"

Krune nodded.

"I can use any type of elemental replacement now, or should I call it an elemental clone, maybe?"

Yusa got furious.

"Then, why didn't you tell us about that before? You could have shown that to Ao, Shinja, and myself!"

Krune looked back at Yusa with a puzzled face.

"But I just learned it after Tasier's battle yesterday. Only today, before the battles started, did I finally finish getting used to the five elements. There wasn't enough time for me to teach you at all!"

Yusa almost fainted. He understood the replacement of all five elements in a single day!

"I hate this elemental core of yours!"

Krune was amazed. It wasn't like he chose to get an elemental core himself, you know?

Report chapter

Lina turned out to be the first seeded contestant to fall in the Mercenary Selection. As the saying goes, you never know where talent might appear. No one expected much from the Water Dragon at first, but it turned out he was the one to get the final laugh.

The battles continued and, soon, the fourth round was over. Krune and Ao had no problems in their fights either, much for Rog Werer and Shad Forgon sadness. After another pause of two hours, the fifth round finally started. That time, Ao would be fighting Rog Werer, the second fight of the fifth round. Krune, on the other hand, would not encounter Shad in the fifth round. Only in the last round, the sixth, would he fight the seeded player of his group bracket. It would also be the final duel that decided who advanced to the final phase.

Ao went up on the arena. Rod Werer had also been there already. The referee was just waiting for the confirmation to start. After taking a last look at Ao and Rog, he signalized the start of the battle.

Rog was a cultivator of the Sky Fall Continent, but he had not been specialized in the water element. His elements of specialization were earth and fire, a right combination for a big man like him, not to mention that his weapon of choice was the dual maces. He used brute force to smash through his enemies and the earth element to protect himself.

Surprisingly, it wasn't Rog Werer who made the first move as everyone was expecting, but Ao, instead. Ao knew that this might be a tough opponent. Then, he took the initiative: wind element for movement and swiftness, fire element for power, and metal for sharpness. He had no need to wait for the other part to move. He appeared behind Rog in a second and slashed forward.

But Rog was indeed a seeded player. Even though his speed wasn't as good as Ao, he had fought plenty of speed-focused cultivators before. By rotating his mace, Rog deflected the attacks aimed at him while the other mace came smashing down at Ao. One could see the flames of his Fire Element around it. Ao retreated to the side, and the place that he had just a second ago become a crater. Rog took his mace back and smiled at him.

"Quite fast, but that's useless if you don't have the power to even break through my defense."

Ao heard that but didn't mind the least bit. That was far from what he could do. He only used Sword Intent in his very first battle. After that, he defeated his opponents, relying on his control over the elements and swordplay alone. Some people even thought that they had imagined things and that Ao didn't know how to use Sword Intent.

Rog saw that Ao's expression didn't change even a bit after his mace attack and chuckled. He wasn't the type to keep waiting for his opponent, so he also moved forward. He had absolute confidence in his power and defense. Ao kept dodging and sent a few attacks now and then, but neither could breach Rog's defense. Of course, Rog couldn't do anything to Ao either, so the battle reached that stalemate.

Krune and Yusa were looking at that and sighed. The others might not know, but they understood Ao better than anyone else.

"He is obviously testing his sword skills. This is the first time he found a top tier cultivator at the same level as him with high defense. He is trying to understand how much power he should use against someone like that," said Krune while looking at the battle. Yusa heard that and was a little puzzled.

"But why is it that he only increases the power of each attack by a bit every time?"

Krune pondered a bit and then said:

"Maybe it's because he is trying to find the balance between soft and hard. Between us, he is the only close combat cultivator. You and Shinja are support or range-based cultivators. I'm also specialized at ranged attacks, so he hadn't fought anyone at the same level who could resist his attacks and still keep fighting. Of course, that is only my opinion, we will need to ask him later."

Krune was right. Sparring with Krune, Yusa, or Shinja was very good for Ao. But the lack of a close combat cultivator at the same level in their group made several doubts appear in his mind. It could also be said Rog has already been very lucky. If he were a long-range focused cultivator, he would have lost already. Few could match Ao's understanding against ranged cultivators, and he had Krune, Yusa, and Shinja to thank for that.

The people outside didn't notice anything. The battle seemed very even in their eyes, but that was just for those without discerning eyes. The referee and most of the Divine Soul elders and Guild Heads had already noticed that something was strange about the way that Ao battled. Arlan was also looking at it when, suddenly, his eyes lit up. He then started to laugh out loud.

"I see, I see! So that's how it is, no wonder, no wonder."

A member of the Makui Continent team heard that and couldn't help but ask why he was laughing at Ao and Rog's battle.

"That Ao Sulian guy is a sword user just like me. So I can see what he is trying to do. Simply put, he doesn't have a lot of experience against close combat cultivators at the same level as him. So he is using Rog to refine his understanding of the sword at melee range."

A few of the contestants heard that, and their faces showed incredibility.

"Is he crazy? It's Rog who he is fighting against. One good hit and he will be done for. He's being too brazen!"

"There are crazy people everywhere, and those usually don't live long, just let him be."

"He had almost been hit several times already, not to mention that he hasn't done any damage to Rog so far yet. I don't think he will last long like this."

Arlan heard those commentaries but didn't say anything. There was no point in discussing such things with lower-level cultivators, this battle in his eyes was completely different. The others might not have noticed, but he was sure Rog had no chance at winning. Not to mention that he still had remembered to have felt a hint of Sword Intent coming from Ao's sword in the first battle Ao had last day. He didn't think that it was only his imagination.

Rog was starting to get upset. There have been many opportunities where he could have struck Ao down and ended this battle. But Ao would have always dodged in some fantastic way the last instant, which made him furious. But he didn't lose his cool. Ao couldn't do anything against his defense either since he couldn't receive any damage. Sooner or later, the victory will be his.

Ao, on the other hand, was very relaxed. That battle against Rog had cleared many doubts against melee range fights that he had before. But it started to get less and less useful. The reason was simple, Rog, in the end, wasn't a speed-focused melee range cultivator, so it was way too easy to dodge his attacks. Fortunately, his extremely high defense helped Ao understand the concept between hard and soft.

Ao once again dodged and decided it was enough. Suddenly, it seemed that his sword came to life. The power of the elements around it increased. He started to get faster, he attacked Rog by the side, Rog defended as always. But for some reason, his mace passed through the sword as if it didn't exist. It turned out that it was only an afterimage, the sword hit his earth defense but couldn't stop its power. It was the first time in this battle that someone got injured.

Rog saw that and couldn't believe it! Even with his Divine Sense, he couldn't follow the speed of the sword. Ao kept sending a barrage of attacks from all sides, small cuts started to appear all over Rog's body. They weren't anything serious if there were only one or two. But the sheer amount was making him lose too much blood. Rog finally lost his patience and activated one of his trump cards.

"Fire Body!"

The fire started to revolve around Rog, and the temperature of the arena immediately soared. Rog looked like a ball of flames himself. He then focused on his own movement technique and charged forward. Ao suddenly had to put a lot more effort to dodge Rog's attacks. The effectiveness of his own attacks diminished a lot too. It wasn't that Rog had become faster, but the area covered by his attacks was a lot bigger. Ao didn't have to dodge only the maces anymore, but the fire attacks coming with each swing.

Ao saw that, and a smile appeared in his face. He thought there wasn't anything else to learn from this fight. But it seemed like he was mistaken. He increased his speed and the power of his own attacks and started to use his skills. Rog wasn't receiving only attacks from Ao's sword anymore. There were several blazing wind blades. A merge skill that he'd learned from Krune, coming from everywhere. His vacuum blade skill was active at that time. The speed of his attacks and his skills in the area of effect increased another fold too.

Rog was indeed a seeded mercenary. Even while defending against Ao's attacks and the blazing wind blades, he still found apertures where he could launch attacks at Ao. Unfortunately for him, Ao was too fast!

In fact, as long as Ao wished, he could take the attacks head-on. But it would use a lot of spiritual energy and show to the others that this state wasn't his best. It's always good to keep some trump cards in the pocket.

Krune's group, Arlan and the Divine Soul Realm elders and Guild Heads, could already see the outcome of that battle. Although the two of them seemed to be evenly matched again, the fact was that Ao had an absolute advantage in their exchanges. Even more, injuries started to accumulate on Rog's body, and he already started to feel dizzy due to the blood loss. But he gritted his teeth and performed another one of his trump cards. He suddenly gave up his earth element defense and switched to the wind element. He might be able to control two elements simultaneously, but it didn't mean that he didn't know how to use others.

The power of Rog's fire attacks got completed by his wind element while his speed increased by a lot. The people outside saw that and noticed they had been underestimating Rog all along. It was a good thing Ao forced Rog to show his cards before the final phase. It doesn't matter if Ao or Rog won, they were grateful to both for showing so much that day.

Ao was quite impressed with that. Rog moved this fast and swift with his big body while still increasing the power and the area of effect of his attacks. If it were anyone else in his group, they would have lost already, and since that is the case, Ao made a decision.

"Since you decided to show everything you got, out of respect, I will take you seriously too."

Ao's sword suddenly seemed different, but at the same time, it didn't. It was as if some kind of power was coming from it. The majority of the mercenaries taking part in this selection couldn't tell exactly what it was, except for Krune's group, Arlan Rosier, and some of the other seeded contestants.

"Sword Intent!"

Arlan saw that and laughed even more at that moment.

"I knew I wasn't wrong, it really was Sword Intent!"

The other seeded mercenaries also noticed that. However, their reactions were the total opposite of Arlan's, their faces were gloomy. A Foundation Establishment cultivator who can use Sword Intent and is also under 40 years of age! How rare is that in the Makui Planet?

In the arena, Rog also noticed that, and finally, some fear appeared on his face. But he wouldn't give up that moment. He still believed that he only needed one good hit, and the victory was his. He charged forward even madder than before. He was stacking everything in his next attacks.

Surprisingly, Ao didn't try to dodge that time. He also activated his movement technique and stepped forward. Rog saw that Ao was planning to fight him head-on and got delighted. He refused to believe that even with the sword intent, Ao could take an attack of his at full power.

The referee narrowed his eyes, this was the decisive moment, and the time he would have to save the loser in such an outcome would be very short. Without getting on the way of both Rog and Ao, he approached the place where the exchange would be made. He was ready to intervene the moment the victor of the clash appeared.

Rog roared and smashed down his two maces with his most powerful mace skill.

"Titan's Fury!"

Ao also showed one of his cards at that moment. It was the same attack he used against Turi Belane back in the Mercenary Headquarters. It was just that this time the Sword Intent behind it, the power of the elements fused in the attack, and the speed was a lot more powerful.

"Decapitation in Flames"

Arlan saw that and knew who the victor was even before the attacks hit each other.

The moment the maces and the sword clashed with each other, the maces immediately snapped in two. Not only that, but even the air, the skill, the elements, everything was slashed in half. It was as if a void had appeared where the two maces were before. The referee was alarmed at that sight. Ao's attack was faster than he had predicted. He wanted to intervene, but it was already too late. He immediately thought that the first dead person of this selection would appear during his watch.

But surprisingly, Rog was fine. The people saw that, and their jaws dropped. Just how did Rog survive that attack? Even the Divine Soul referee was powerless at that moment. After that exchange, Rog fell on his knees, looked at Ao, and sighed.

"You changed the trajectory of your attack the last instant. The sword slash passed above my head, didn't it?"

Ao smiled and then nodded.

That moment, the crowd finally understood the situation. Everyone looked at Ao as if he were a monster. Guild Head Yulie had an ugly face. His mercenary guild had only two mercenaries with real chances of getting one of the five slots. One of them was Shad Forgon, his nephew, while the other was none other than Rog Werer, who had just lost, and both of them were fighting members of the Yule Continent at the top of that.

Other than Arlan, the other seeded mercenaries started to consider if they should admit defeat when they encounter Ao at the final phase. Ao turned out to be too strong. It was evident that Rog and Ao weren't in the same league, and since their strength isn't much different from Rog, it would do no good to fight him head-on.

Ao came down from the arena and sat to recover his spiritual energy. Although the outcome of his group was pretty much decided due to Rog's loss, he would never underestimate his opponents.

His fight was the last to be over between the second fights of the fifth round. Another two hours pause came by, and the third fight of each group started.

Report chapter

This was the last fight that interested everyone before the final phase, Krune and Shad's fight. First, because Krune was one of the dark horses, and second because of what had happened last night. Not to mention that if Shad loses, the Sky Fall continent mercenary guild will be basically out of the Martial Gathering.

Yusa and Ao, as expected, passed their last opponents in the fifth round without big troubles, and are now in the sixth and last round as well. Between the three of them, it could be said that Ao's fight was the hardest so far, and considering their combat power, they didn't think it would take long for them to finish it anyway.

But there was another thing. The participants might not have noticed, but Yusa, Ao, and Shinja had. Krune has been in a terrible mood since last night. It was just that you need to know him well to perceive it. They looked at Shad's direction and couldn't help but feel pity for him.

Shad and Krune went up in the arena. Yulie Forgon watched them and was almost praying for Shad's fight not to be too hard. Shad was also a little unsettled. He was confident in his own ability, but with the prowess that Krune showed so far, he might need to pay some price to pass this last obstacle. Thus, he decided to go out from the very start. He noticed that Krune was a long-range focused cultivator, and planned on getting close to him and finishing the fight as fast as possible.

The referee looked at both of them and raised his hand, then he dropped it down.

"Start!"

Shad immediately used his lightning movement to enclose Krune. His weapon was already out, and the power of water and lightning could be seen on it. He surrounded Krune and used one of his strongest skills.

"Saber Thunderstorm!"

Sparks flew everywhere from his saber. Water fell without stop helping to carry the power of the lightning element. It was a very strong skill, but just as the attack was about to hit Krune, the lightning element disappeared without a trace. It was as if it had received a command to do that. Shad looked at that and couldn't believe what has just happened. He then focused on Krune once more, but…

Krune had disappeared!

"Tribulation Lightning Instant Movement!"

That wasn't the real Tribulation Lightning Movement. It was the one Krune used both Normal Lightning element and Tribulation Lightning at the same time. After several tests, Krune found out that the best balance without damaging his body was 30% Tribulation Lightning and 70% normal Lightning Element. Of course, his speed was already far above what Shad could do with his own Lightning Movement.

Shad focused on his Divine Sense to find where Krune had gone, but as soon as he did that, a hand touched his back. At the same time, a Divine Sense message reached him.

"Playing with lightning in front of me? What a joke!"

Krune's hand was filled with some Tribulation Lightning. As soon as it touched Shad's back...

KaBoom!

Shad's body seemed like to have been hit by a real lightning bolt. His body shined blue and purple for a second. Krune hadn't used tribulation lightning alone, but 70% normal Lightning Element and only 30% Tribulation lightning, just like his movement technique. But that was more than enough to completely fry Shad's body to the point where he looked like charcoal. Shad's body fell forward and hit the ground. The battle was over in a single move.

Arlan immediately looked over from his arena. It was the first time he felt amazed at this Selection. With the power Krune has just shown, he wasn't sure if even him could win against Krune or not.

The referee was taken aback. He saw Krune's move, but because of the distance, even as a Divine Soul cultivator, he wouldn't be able to stop Krune in time. He examined Shad's body and let out a sigh of relief, Krune only disabled him. Although his appearance looked gruesome, he wasn't dead or crippled, of course. That degree of injuries would definitely take a few months to recover.

He then looked back at Krune and proclaimed.

"Krune Wins!"

Krune heard that and came down from the arena. He felt refreshed. Everyone looked at him the same way they looked at Arlan every time he fought. The seeded contestants immediately made up their minds. At the final phase, they were absolutely giving up a fight against him. Not only did he beat Shad easily! It was obvious it was far from his real power. He probably could even fight some new Core Formation Cultivators head-on!

Yulie Forgon was feeling terrible, none of his participants reached the final phase. He looked at Bary and noticed that he was looking at him too. The worst was the smile on his face, it shined like the sun. Yulie had the urge to punch his face right there and then, but he controlled himself. He had already checked Shad's condition and knew that he wasn't in any danger. If Krune wanted Shad dead, he would be gone.

The sixth and last round continued. The seeded contestants and their adversaries, who had stopped for a second to see what happened in Shad's arena, resumed their battle. Even Arlan didn't defeat anyone as fast as Krune did in this Selection. One by one, the victors appeared, except for Krune's sixth arena. The other arenas ended as predicted, and just like that, the final eight have been decided.

After the higher-ups announced the results, the day was over for the Selection. The final part would only happen the next day, so everyone was free to do whatever they wanted. The Sky Fall people wanted to go home already. But, as part of the Mercenary Alliance, they couldn't simply leave midway. They had to watch it to the end. The Yule continent, on the other hand, was cheerful. Usually, it would be themselves the ones who wanted to go home earlier. But not that time, they had three contestants going to the final, so no one wanted to leave at all.

After everyone went back to their residences, the elders, guild heads, and mercenaries, who passed the bracket's fights, gathered and started to discuss how to proceed the next day. Surprisingly, everyone was discussing how to deal with the Yule Continent. So far, all their contestants at the final phase were extremely strong. The only one they aren't sure about was Yusa because she didn't fight anyone strong enough to make her use her real abilities. Chances are that she isn't any weaker than Ao.

On the Yule Continent side, the mercenaries who lost, the elders and Guild Head Bary were…

Eating Krune's food…

If the other participants of the different continents saw that, would they think the Yule Continent was looking down on them?

In fact, be it Krune, Yusa, or Ao, they weren't too much afraid of the outcome of the next battles, other than Arlan. There wasn't anyone on the other side that could pose too much of a threat to them. Of course, they wouldn't lower their guards because of that. Who knows what kind of trump card they would have in their pockets?

Later that night, the Bary Casfiu received a visit from the Guild Heads of the Ice and Borle Continent, who puzzled him very much, but he called them in any way.

"What can I do for you?"

The two Guild Head looked at each other and seemed a little embarrassed, but they asked anyway.

"We would like to ask if Guild Head Bary can make one of your three contestants to give up the fights tomorrow."

Bary heard that, and his face darkened. During all the previous Selections, they had never gone to the other guilds to ask for something like that even though they are weakest ones. Bary calmed down and looked at the Guild Head of the Ice Continent.

"Even if I agreed with this request, I couldn't understand why the Ice Continent would be asking for something like this. Don't your guild have three contestants in the final phase just like us?"

The guild head heard that and felt even more embarrassed. He noticed the power of the Three Yule Continent participants, and he thought none of his contestants was a match for any of them.

"Your kids this time are too strong. It doesn't matter whether I have three or the Borle Continent have one. It would be hard for us to get a slot, each with Arlan from the Makui Continent and your people. In the end, there would be only a single slot remaining, and we want to have at least one of our contestants to appear in the Martial Gathering."

Guild Head Bary took a deep breath and said:

"How many times did our Yule Continent appear in the Martial Gathering in the past thousand years? Can the two of you guess it?"

The guild heads looked at each other but shook their heads. They didn't care about the Yule Continent to start with, so how could they know that?

"I tell you then. It was seven times. A total of one hundred selections have been done so far, but only seven times did we get someone to take place in the Martial Gathering. But even so, we never made such a request before, and now you are asking us to give one of our chances to finally show our heads proud out there, does it look a good thing for you?"

The Borle Continent Guild Head immediately replied.

"We aren't asking it without anything in exchange. We are willing to compensate the one who gives up properly. She or he would have enough resources to cultivate all the way to the Divine Soul Realm without any problems. We can also compensate for the Yule Continent Mercenary Guild properly accordingly."

Bary Casfiu shook his head.

"That's not gonna happen. Let alone if I agree with it or not. I can guarantee you, not a single one of the three of them will give up! And I can tell you the reason. It's because as long as they don't die for the Heavenly Tribulations, there is no doubt that all three of them will definitely reach the Nascent Soul one day. Their talents are just that big, specially Krune."

The guild heads looked at Bary and then asked.

"Can we try to talk to them? If what you said is really true, then they will refuse straight away, that shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Bary was taken aback.

"This…"

He pondered a bit and then nodded his head. Doing it that way would avoid friction between the guilds in the future. He then called Krune, Ao, and Yusa and explained the situation to them.

Yusa heard that, and her eyes lit up.

"How much spirit stones are we talking about here, which rank?"

Bary heard that and almost fainted!

Where is your dignity? Do you have any pride at all?

The Ice and Borle Continent eyes lit up after hearing that. It seemed there was room for negotiation, but before they continued, Yusa made another question.:

"Now that I think about it, is there any reward for those selected to participate in the Martial Gathering?"

Bary Casfiu shook his head.

"There isn't. The slots to participate are already the biggest reward the participants would want, so we never gave any reward to those who get the slots."

That answer made Yusa's conviction even stronger.

"Alright! Then, let's hear how much you can pay for me to give up. I don't care about future resources, I want to know what you can pay to me now."

Her cultivation speed wasn't a problem anymore. What she lacked were spirit stones to create more Spiritual Energy Meridians. As for the Divine Path Sect Entrance Exam Slot? With her Spiritual Energy Meridians and the Rainbow Sect Soul Technique, she was very confident in breaking through the Core Formation Realm in the next nine months. It would be the time when the Makui Planet would send their selected cultivators and demon beasts.

The guild heads pondered and after a breath discussion through Divine Sense, and they came up with a number.

"Ten Thousand Rank Five high-quality spirit stones, how does that sound for you?"

Yusa was taken aback. That much?

Even Bary Casfiu was surprised at that number. Although his Yule Continent Headquarters could pay such an amount, it would still leave a hole in the guild's pocket. He didn't believe that the thought of not having a single Martial Gathering participant would weigh so heavily in those two guild's head minds.

Yusa gritted her teeth and said:

"Fifteen thousand! Fifteen thousand, and it's a deal."

The guild heads were taken aback too, but they replied right after.

"Twelve Thousand! That is the most we can do. Don't be too greedy! This is something that hurts even our pockets."

Yusa immediately nodded.

"Deal!"

Krune and Ao saw all that happen and just shook their heads. They knew exactly what Yusa was planning. She would be participating in the Divine Path Sect Entrance Exam as well as getting the Twelve Thousand Rank Five high-quality spirit stones. They even felt a little jealous.

As to Ao, he didn't say anything because he really wanted to fight in the Martial Gathering. Not to mention that he gathered quite some wealth from Turi Belane back them.

And Krune, the Yule Continent guild, was already backing him up, so he didn't really need it. He thought a little and decided to ask for some resources to use in his ninth meridian creation after the Selection was over.

In Bary's case, he could only comfort himself.

'At least, my Yule Continent guild can keep on good terms with their continents.'

His dream of having three participants in the Martial Gathering at the same time was over just like that.

Report chapter

On the next day, the participants received the news that Yusa had given up the chance to fight in the final phase, it was said that she wasn't confident in winning against the other competitors, so she decided to avoid unnecessary injuries by giving up earlier.

Everyone thought that something was fishy, but that was also good. It would be one less strong opponent for them to deal with. After deciding the order of the battles through drawing lots, the final day of fights finally started. Every single cultivator or demon beast would have to fight each of the other contestants at least once. There would be one fight every time, the five mercenaries with most victories would then get a slot for the Martial Gathering each.

The referee came up in the arena and called the name of the first two.

"First fight, Tasier from Borle Continent against Lofa Harcken from Ice Continent."

Tasier and Lofa went up in the stage, the battle started moments after. Lofa and Tasier exchanged quite a few blows, but in the end, Lofa gave up the fight. She was a water and wind element user, while Tasier main element was lightning. He had the advantage from the very start, he didn't even need to show any of his trump cards. That time before the battle was over.

The referee then announced the next fight.

"Second Fight, Krune from Yule Continent against Drorne from Ice Continent."

As soon as the two came upon the stage, Drorne admitted defeat. There was no way he would risk heavy injuries in a fight where there were no chances of victory. Krune saw that and just smiled. It seemed like the prowess he showed last day prevented quite some time-wasting now. That battle against Shad wasn't something that Krune would usually do. His skills were much better at long range, but he just wanted to vent some steam, so he did what he did, and that was only because he had absolute confidence in his victory.

Since there was no battle, the referee called the next competitors.

"Third Fight, Arlan Rosier from Makui Continent against Jack Biurer from Ice continent."

Jack followed Drorne steps and gave up straight away. Arlan didn't mind. He had no interest in fighting weaker opponents.

"The Forth Fight, Ao Sulian from Yule Continent against Tasier from Borle Continent."

Ao and Tasiear came up in the arena. The fight started, and Tasier used the same strategy as always. But even though he was a lightning element user, Ao's speed wasn't the least bit slower than his. Since Ao had already shown his Sword Intent in the battle against Rog Werer, there was no need to conceal it anymore. Tasier did his best to shake Ao from his tail, but nothing worked. He needed space so that he could use his abilities, even his melee attacks needed space to gather speed. But unfortunately for him, Ao was a master against long-ranged cultivators. Who knows how much Ao suffered in his teammates' hands!? So the battle didn't take long before Tasier gave up.

The battles continued. No one tried to fight Krune or Arlan. Ao was the only one who exchanged a few blows against his opponents, but they all gave up in the end. His Sword Intent was just too fearsome.

Once more, the referee came forward and announced another fight.

"Krune from Yule Continent against Ao Sulian from Yule Continent."

Everyone immediately paid attention to that, but unfortunately, a fight didn't take place as they wanted. Ao gave up the fight as soon as he came upon the arena. Krune's group spared a lot, so they knew very well the difference between each other. There was no point in that battle.

After a few more battles, it was finally the time for Arlan and Krune to go up in the stage. Each one of them already had five victories each. They were victories won all through their opponents giving up before the fight even started. Arlan was ready to give it a try. He wasn't planning to stake it all in this fight, he only wanted to check Krune's combat power for a little. Unfortunately for him, Krune admitted defeat as well. He'd already got his slot for the Martial Gathering, not to mention that his group had already decided that Ao would be the one testing Arlan.

Although Arlan was disappointed, he didn't say anything. There would be plenty of strong opponents when the Martial Gathering started anyway.

So far, the ones who guaranteed their slots were Krune, Arlan, Ao, and Tasier. However, the last slot would be decided between the Ice Continent three mercenaries, Tasier's lightning, and highly skilled flying ability put all the Ice Continent people in a bad spot. Of course, they still did their best during their fights against Tasier, and the Thunder Hawk had to use almost all of his trump cards to triumph over them. But all efforts paid off in the end.

When everyone thought nothing more would happen, the referee called Ao and Arlan to the stage. Surprisingly, Ao was planning to take Arlan Head-On!

Ao looked at Arlan and said.

"As a Sword Intent user, I can feel that you also have it. Would you mind comparing sword skills with me?"

Arlan heard that Divine Sense message, and his eyes lit up. He was thinking that Ao would also give up because he had already guaranteed his slot. But thinking he would ask for a fight, Arlan couldn't ask for more.

"Great! I accept your challenge! But it will be ridiculous to have both of us severely injured here even before the Martial Gathering started. So what about this? We will decide it in one move, our aim will be our sword attacks, not the other's body. What do you think?"

Ao heard that and agreed that it would indeed be very idiotic to become dead weight.

The referee noticed they had some kind of Divine Sense conversation but didn't say anything. Both of them have already succeeded in entering the Martial Gathering after all.

"Start!"

Arlan was a Fire, Wind, and Lightning element cultivator. He raised his sword above his head and started to concentrate his spiritual energy and elements. His sword seemed like to become alive and roared with fire and lightning. The wind element around only helped to increase the power of its roar. It was clear Arlan was planning to use a powerful attack. Not to mention that the rest of the participants started to feel the same power as the one they felt from Ao.

"Sword Intent, Arlan is finally using his Sword Intent!"

"He didn't use it even once during the entire selection. I thought we wouldn't have the chance anymore, but it seems we are lucky!"

Ao noticed how serious Arlan was and decided not to hold back as well. He held his sword on the side and started to accumulate spiritual energy too. The power of fire and wind gathered around his sword, while the metal element increased its sharpness several times over. He decided to show one of his strongest attacks in this exchange.

The Makui and Yule Continent guild heads started to sweat all over. Both of them have already passed this phase. Why are they taking it this seriously now? What if they get hurt or maybe even die?

Both Ao and Arlan received Divine Sense message to stop it and give up this battle, but they completely ignored those messages.

Finally, the two of them were done with their preparations and charged forward. In fact, in a real battle, they wouldn't have the time to do what they did unless they could bind their enemies for some time. But they came to have a tacit understanding, so neither stopped the other.

The referee was going crazy. Why do they have to do something like this just when everything was about to be over? He felt like crying but had no tears!

In an instant, both attacks met each other.

"Inferno Sword!"

"Searing Slash!"

Surprisingly, there was no explosion. In fact, there was almost no sound at all. Their skills were very even and ended up canceling the enemy's skills after they disappeared. All the elements dissipated too, and only their swords and sword intents encountered each other. There was a metallic sound of something being snapped in half and then silence.

Ao and Arlan retreated their attack forms and looked at their swords. Both swords couldn't resist the other's sword intent and broke in half. They would need to buy a new one now! They looked at each other with weird faces and then started to laugh.

"Amazing attack, really an amazing attack!"

Ao nodded.

"I agree! Thinking that our swords would break together, what's the chance of something like this happening?"

But then Ao looked at his sword and sighed.

"I admit defeat."

Arlan was taken aback.

"Why? It is more like a draw in my eyes."

Ao just laughed after hearing that.

"We both know that it's not true. I used everything I knew about Sword Intent, but it was obvious that it wasn't your limit. If I'm not wrong, you could have gone one step further, am I right?"

Arlan looked at Ao in surprise and became a little embarrassed.

"Sorry."

Ao shook his head.

"There is no need for that, although you haven't gone all out, I reckon that you were very close to that, let me guess, 90%?"

Arlan shook his head.

"80%."

This time it was Ao who was surprised. He didn't think Arlan was lying. Just like himself, Arlan was the type who put everything in his sword. It was beneath himself to lie about it.

"I see, it seems I have a lot to improve still."

"I don't see it like that. Even if it isn't directly related, remember that your cultivation is lower than mine. Our spiritual energy has a very big impact on our Sword Intent. When you reach the 9th stage's peak, you will probably be no weaker than me."

Arlan said that not to comfort Ao, but because he really thought that it was the case. He believed that to be incredible, after all, he has a Pure Yang Body. But Ao's control over the fire element was just as strong as his. It was then that he remembered something and sent another Divine Sense message to Ao.

"Between us, if Krune and I fought seriously, who you reckon that would be the winner?"

Ao was surprised by that question, but out of respect, he decided to answer anyway.

"If Krune stays in his human form, he should have an 80% to 90% chance of winning against you. If he goes back to his real form, I doubt you would have any chance."

Arlan was taken aback. No chances at all? Was that any joke? But after looking at the serious face Ao was showing, something told him Ao wasn't trying to scare him or lying. He then took a deep breath and asked.

"Then what kind of demon beast is him? I haven't seen him using his true form even once during this selection."

Ao shook his head.

"I can't tell you that, sorry."

There was another reason why Ao said this much. It was because Arlan definitely wasn't the only one curious about Krune's real form. Since he was this strong, people even thought that Krune could be a demon beast with a Divine Beast bloodline. But they immediately discarded such an idea. The more rare and stronger the demon beast, the higher their cultivation needs to be for them to change into their human form. Any demon beast with a divine beast bloodline definitely wouldn't be able to change into their human form before the Divine Soul Realm at the very least. Since that is the case, just what kind of demon beast could Krune be?

All they knew was that Krune was definitely more common than the Thunder Hawn Tasier or the Water Dragon Drorne. Several of the Divine Soul Realm cultivators tried to force their way in with their Divine Senses to find out what kind of demon beast Krune is. But not a single one of them was successful, all thanks to the Race Cover Technique.

Ao couldn't help but think what kind of faces everyone would show if they found out that Krune was just a wisp. That would be a real sight to behold.

In the end, the referee came forward and announced the five-slot winners.

"Seven Victories, Arlan Rosier."

"Six Victories, Krune."

"Five Victories, Ao Sulian."

"Four Victories, Thunder Hawk Tasier."

"Three Victories, Lofa Harcken."

"The five mentioned cultivators and demon beasts will be able to join the Martial Gathering two months from now. Go back and talk with your Guild Heads for more information."

Krune heard that and felt very happy. He won a slot without lifting a single finger. He wished his life could be this low key more often.

Fortunately, no one heard his thoughts. Otherwise, the other contestants might have already pounced at him together.

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The mercenary Selection was finally over. This time only two mercenaries that participated died or got crippled, a very small number considering the contestants' strength. After arranging their members, all guilds returned to their own residences to prepare to leave. On Yule continent side, everyone was cheerful, it was an unprecedented event.

All the mercenaries departed the next day. Bary was smiling from ear to ear. Even though Yusa sold her chance to get into the Martial Gathering, Krune and Ao guaranteed their slot, not to mention that only their guild got two participants into it, while the other guild got one or none at all. In the past millennia, the small Yule Continent had never had two participants at the same time, much less more than the other guilds, how couldn't he be happy?

After getting back, the guild immediately spread the news about having got two slots this time around. Soon, all the branches of the guild in the continent received the news. In a single night, the standing of the Mercenary Guild in the continent increased quite a bit. As for the two winners, Krune and Ao, they stayed back at the headquarters. They had everything they needed there anyway. It would also help not attract too much attention outside.

After getting back, Yusa immediately went back to her room to start creating her sixth Spiritual Energy Meridian. With the number of spirit stones she had, she definitely could open two or three more. But surprisingly, she created the sixth one only and then called everyone over.

"I tried to start creating the seventh one, but the moment I started, I felt like my dantian was going to break apart."

Krune and the others were surprised, but Krune had an idea of what was happening.

"It can only be your foundation. I got the same problem as you when I was in the Qi Condensation Realm. After creating three meridians, I couldn't create a single one more. Only after breaking through into the Foundation Establishment and getting my core upgraded, I was able to continue."

Yusa understood what that meant. It was probably the universe foundation, much stronger than her own, which means that six meridians were the limit of what she could get at the Foundation Establishment.

Ao already had six Spiritual Energy Meridians, but he hasn't tried to build the seventh yet.

"Let me give a try. I also haven't tried to create a seventh one yet."

Everyone nodded and gave him some space. Ao took out the spirit stones he got from Turi back then and tried to create the next one. But just like Yusa, as soon as he tried, he felt like his dantian was being smashed by something. He immediately stopped after that and shook his head.

"Same thing here, I can't create the seventh one."

Krune pondered a bit and then looked at Shinja.

"You have only five open so far, right?"

Shinja nodded.

"I had to use a lot of spirit stones for my Core Formation Breakthrough, so I didn't have enough to try the sixth one. But I'm planning on making some money in the next two months before I go watch the martial gathering, so I should be able to open the sixth one soon."

But then she thought about something.

"But I don't think you can use my universe foundation as an example, because my dantian was a lot stronger after I broke through into the next realm. So whether I have a universe foundation or not, I think I would still be able to create the seventh at the moment."

Krune heard that and couldn't help but agree with that statement.

"It means we have no way to test whether it was because of the universe foundation or not. But that isn't a big issue! Be it Yusa or Ao, you both are close to the Core Formation Realm anyway. And with the Spiritual Energy Meridians you've already had, plus the Soul Technique of the Rainbow Sect, it shouldn't be that big of an issue for you to succeed."

Yusa smiled and said.

"Not to mention that we have a wisp to eat a few Lightning Bolts, which will help a lot too."

Krune almost fainted after hearing that. Did they care about his wellbeing at all?

Ao and Shinja just laughed.

After the jokes were over, they decided their next steps and parted ways again. Shinja was going to take a few missions for Core Formation Realm cultivators to make some spirit stones. Thanks to her combat prowess, she could get quite a bonus for completing missions above her cultivation level. She also was feeling close to breakthrough into the next stage, so she needed even more spirit stones.

Ao wanted to digest what he'd learned during the Selection, but Krune and Yusa had things to do. So he went to Bary Casfiu to see whether he could arrange someone to practice with him for a while. Bary was more than happy to help. He immediately called out a Core Formation Realm sword user to spare with Ao as much as he wanted. Best of all, that guy also knew Sword Intent. As long as one didn't look for Foundation Establishment cultivators under 40 years old, it was not that hard to find sword ones using Sword Intent. And Bary arranged one at the Late Stages of the Core Formation Realm at the top of that. Ao would not have to be afraid of hurting his opponent at all.

Yusa went back to the Runestone Formations Hall. Although she wasn't ready to accept Halie's offer, she still wanted to learn more. Not to mention that she could make more spirit stones by selling the ones she made. For Yusa, the more wealthy you are, the better!

As for Krune, he had already contacted Marcus to help him with his Shields forging. They haven't started making them yet simply because Marcus was gathering the necessary materials first. The Mercenary Guild had already told them that as long as the request wasn't ridiculous, they would pay for any necessities Krune might have.

Today, Krune was talking with Bary Casfiu to get spirit stones. He wanted to create his ninth Spiritual Energy Meridian. For that, he will definitely need a lot of spirit stones.

"How many spirit stones do you need? And what do you need them for?"

Krune shook his head.

"All I can say is that I need them for a breakthrough in my abilities, but I don't know exactly how many I will need now. But I'm sure I will need a few thousand Rank-Four high quality at the very least."

Bary was taken aback with that amount. What exactly would that many spirit stones need? Only a breakthrough into Core Formation Realm could possibly need that number. He couldn't help but feel a little suspicious. As long as it wasn't Rank-Five Spirit Stones or higher, they could still support that without any big problems. Bary just saw that as an investment, especially since Krune was already this strong at the 7th stage of the Foundation Establishment.

"Very well! I will give you twenty thousand, but I expect you not to fail in the Martial Gathering. If possible, try to break through into the 8th stage in the next two months. Even if your foundation gets a little unstable, you can use the next six months before the Divine Path Sect Entrance Exam to stabilize it again."

Krune nodded.

"I was already expecting to do that anyway, it shouldn't be any problem."

Back in his room, Krune took the spirit stones out and focused on the creation of his ninth Spiritual Energy Meridian. As expected, it used an enormous amount of spiritual energy. From the twenty thousand ranks four spirit stones, Krune used almost thirteen thousand. A lot more than the last time.

As soon as the ninth Spiritual Energy Meridian finished to form, the other eight meridians appeared at the same time. And as if that wasn't enough, Krune also couldn't control them. They started to move around on their own as if they were searching for something. If someone could see Krune now, they would think that he looked like an octopus, it was just that he had one extra tentacle.

After moving around for a while, they finally focused on a single point and stayed there. Krune couldn't help but think.

'Did they find what they were looking for?'

Krune then asked Little Light if he had any idea of what was happening.

"No idea here. I've never seen this cultivation technique of yours before. But if I have to guess, the only thing available in that space is space itself."

Krune was taken aback.

"Space?"

Little Light continued.

"Haven't you noticed? In the exact point where the nine meridians are touching, there is nothing at all. There isn't air, spiritual energy, and much less any kind of element, either. It's completely void of anything."

Krune immediately used his Divine Sense to check and confirmed that Little Light was right. He couldn't feel anything whatsoever on the point where they are focusing.

"Does it mean that they have sentience?"

Little Light immediately disagreed.

"I wouldn't go that far, it's more like an instinctual move. I refuse to believe that a sentient being would be able to hide its presence from me."

Krune let out a sigh of relief. Little Light was already more than enough, and his core wasn't a hotel after all.

Since Krune couldn't control them, he could only wait. Little Light was also curious, so he also paid attention. The void area around the point where the meridians were touching was increasing bit by bit. Krune started to feel that if it continued like that, it might catch the guild's attention, but that didn't happen in the end. After the arena increased to more or less two meters, it stopped expanding. It was then that the meridians inside of the void area started to shine. They retracted a little and then attacked the center of that void area.

Krune looked at that and was taken aback because the meridians passed through some kind of barrier that shouldn't be there and reached the other side. Little Light understood what was happening and explained to Krune.

"They opened a spatial gate. It's connecting to something, it's just that it feels a little strange, the energy inside is somewhat familiar, what is it?"

Krune was already numb with surprises. The meridians were still connected to him, so he knew they haven't left. But what is it that they are trying to take?

It didn't take long for the answer to appear. Krune could feel that the meridians started to absorb the power from the other side, and the energy started to enter his core. That energy then started to take the space of his little universe a fast pace. Krune was alarmed since he didn't know what it was. But even when he tried to check that energy, he couldn't identify what it was at all!

"I see, so that's what it is. Now then, aren't you a lucky bastard?"

"Then tell me what it is, will you?"

Little Light just laughed.

"It's just elemental source energy, nothing impressive. You would get in contact with it after breaking through into the Core Formation Realm anyway."

Krune finally felt relieved. He knew what it was from what he heard from Shinja.

Elemental Source Energy is something that your foundation can help create to help your core nurture your Divine Soul. All Core Formation Realm cultivators and demon beasts had to convert spiritual energy into elemental source energy if they wanted to progress further in their cultivation. It was also why, after you entered the Core Formation Realm, you could immediately gain much higher control over the elements.

Light Little then added.

"All the elemental energy in the universe comes from the elemental source. That's why you can use spiritual energy to convert it back into elemental source energy."

But then Krune thought about something.

"Wait, but my foundation isn't capable of creating this kind of energy yet. Isn't that a problem?"

Little Light simply answered.

"That's why I said you are a lucky bastard. Those meridians of yours can directly connect to the elemental source and take its energy. You don't need to care about using spiritual energy to convert into elemental source energy."

Krune then asked:

"Is there any use for this elemental source energy before Core Formation Realm anyway?"

Little Light immediately answered.

"Of course, there is. It is much purer than spiritual energy, so you can use it for cultivation instead of spiritual energy. It will reduce the chances of your foundation becoming unstable and improve the speed at the same time. It's very nice."

Krune got excited, to think it's that good, but then he noticed something.

"But how come I still can't control my meridians?"

This time, Little Light didn't have an answer.

"Maybe they also need elemental source energy?"

Krune nodded and then focused on his Spiritual Energy Meridians. And sure enough, they were absorbing that energy. In fact, more than 90% of the energy was being used by them. Only a small portion was reaching the end of the meridians and entering his core. Krune couldn't help but wonder what would happen to his meridians.

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The process continued for over an hour before finally finishing after the Spiritual Energy Meridians retracted from that spatial gate. Krune noticed that they started to change; he looked at that, and his mouth twitched.

"Why does it have to be Rainbow too?"

That's true! Krune's spiritual energy meridians now had the same colors as his irises and hairs. Little Light looked at that and confirmed they had the same color as his elemental core too.

"Try to see if you can connect to the elemental source energy on your own as they did."

Only then did Krune wake up.

"That's right! If I can keep connecting to the elemental source energy, I won't need to care about spiritual energy anymore."

Krune immediately summoned his Spiritual Energy Meridians and tried to do that, but he soon found a problem.

"Wait, first of all, how exactly did my Spiritual Energy Meridians even create that spatial gate?"

Little Light also didn't know.

"I have no idea! In theory, without the help of formations, only at the Void Breaking Realm would one be able to open a spatial gate. This is totally different from simply teleporting over. I reckon that no formation master in your planet would be able to make a formation capable of opening a spatial gate that can be kept open."

Krune tried to put them together like they were before, but nothing happened. Then he tried to attack a single point in the air as the meridians did, but that was no good either. Krune was puzzled as he could be.

"Let me try to cultivate with them, maybe there is something different now."

Krune concentrated once more and started to cultivate. His Spiritual Energy Meridians began to absorb the spiritual energy of the surroundings as they always did. But, suddenly, Krune noticed that something else was different.

"I see, they can now absorb spiritual energy and convert directly into elemental source energy, as well."

As mentioned before (check chapter 6, if you don't remember), the Spiritual Energy Meridians can convert the Spiritual Energy around straight away. Cultivators and demon beasts can't take the Spiritual Energy since it would not be compatible with their cores and dantians. They need to convert it first. The Spiritual Energy Meridians conversion capacity is far above any normal meridian. The elemental source energy is exactly the same thing, Core Formation Realm cultivators have to convert the spiritual energy into elemental source energy for their use.

"But this speed…"

Krune noticed that the majority of the Spiritual Energy was the same as always. Just around 10% of the Spiritual Energy taken for conversion became Elemental Source Energy. The rest was still the same converted Spiritual Energy he always used.

Little Light saw that and said.

"What are you complaining about? This is already very good. If I were you, I would keep this energy aside instead of using it for cultivation. It will help a lot during your Core Formation Breakthrough."

Krune then asked:

"How will it help me there?"

Litle Light answered with another question:

"Why do you think cultivators and demon beasts need so many spirit stones when they are breaking into the Core Formation Realm?"

Krune was taken aback with that question, but couldn't find an answer. He knew that the process included having part of your own soul being absorbed by the core. But he never thought about what the spiritual energy was used for. Seeing that Krune didn't know the answer, Little Light continued:

"The reason is that only the soul alone isn't enough. The core itself needs that spiritual energy to finish its final transformation, or could it be that you thought the core of a Core Formation Realm was exactly the same as the one you had during the Foundation Establishment?"

Little Light continued:

"This is also the reason why cultivation becomes slower, although you can still use Spiritual Energy for battle. When you talk about increasing your cultivation, the conversion has to be done first. Otherwise, it would be much easier to reach the Core Formation Realm peak. Think about this: does it make any sense to you that the same spiritual energy you always used to cultivate before is also effective in the Core Formation Stages?"

Krune felt enlightened.

"I see, now that you said that. It really looks weird that higher level cultivators need exactly the same kind of energy for cultivation. When I think about my breakthrough, since I will need a lot of spiritual energy, if I use Elemental Source Energy instead, the quality of the core last transformation will improve, and so will the Divine Soul inside if I use Elemental Source Energy instead, am I right?"

Little Light chuckled.

"You aren't that dumb after all."

But then Krune got a little curious:

"Do you know if other cultivators can get the same result as me?"

Little Light answered straight away:

"There are treasures out there to help nurture the Core and the Divine Soul inside as well. But I reckon that this Spiritual Energy Meridians of yours is a first."

But then Krune thought about something.

"In that case, can't a Foundation Establishment use the Elemental Source Energy of a Core Formation Realm?"

Little Light just said:

"You already know the answer to this question, don't you?"

Krune felt a little embarrassed, he did know indeed.

"Cough, Cough, the Elemental Source Energy the Core Formation Realm cultivators convert are only compatible with themselves, others wouldn't be able to use it."

In fact, Krune just wanted to know if there were a manner from him to provide this energy to help Ao, Yusa, Lakin, and everyone else. But he understood that it wouldn't be possible.

"What kind of treasures can be used for that then?"

Little Light snorted.

"Treasures you absolutely won't find in this piece of a shit planet that you live in."

Krune then sighed. That difference between planets was just too great.

"Sadly, I can't connect to the Elemental Source Energy behind that spatial gate anymore. I could feel there was so much there."

Little Light, on the other hand, didn't think it to be strange.

"It's already a wonderful thing that your Spiritual Energy Meridians can connect to that at all. I really can't understand how a Spatial Gate could be open without your cultivation being at the Void Breaking Realm. That's too unrealistic."

Krune nodded. Since he can already store that energy, that was enough. It was not like his cultivation had any need for that before; it only meant that he would need to cultivate at the same pace as he always did.

Little Light then said.

"By the way, you meridians now don't simply absorb spiritual energy anymore. So Spiritual Energy Meridians isn't exactly a proper name for it. What about simply call them Rainbow Meridians?"

Krune felt like forcefully dragging Little Light out to give him a beating.

"Rainbow Meridians, your head!"

Little Light, of course, was just having some fun. After the time he spent with Krune, he knew how Krune came to be very sensitive to this word.

Krune pondered a bit and then said:

"Elemental Source Meridians will do."

Little Light just laughed.

"That's not very original."

Krune didn't mind, though.

"Simple is best, no need to overthink it."

After spending some more time getting used to the meridians' new abilities, Krune left his room and went back to the Blacksmith Hall. Marcus had already contacted him to tell that he got all the materials needed for his Thirty-Eight Hexagonal Flying Shields.

Arriving there, he could see Marcus at the entrance waiting for him. They moved straight away into a forging room, Krune would need to forge his own Divine Imprints while Marcus would add them to the shields Krune asked to be forged.

"It gave me quite a headache to find this amount of Spiritual Azure Steel. The Mercenary Guild got very generous after you passed that Selection, didn't they?"

Krune just laughed. It was good, they did. Otherwise, he might have been the one to accept that deal about giving up the chance to fight for a slot in the Martial Gathering.

"This Azure Spiritual Steel can hold a lot of spiritual energy. So, unless the battle takes a long time or the cultivation of the person you are fighting against is much higher than yours, it should not run out of spiritual energy. I reckon I will need around a day for each of the shields you want. But since I've already got paid, you don't need to worry about the time. Just be sure to be ready to forge a Divine Imprint every time I ask you to do so."

Krune nodded.

"As long as they are finished before the Martial Gathering, I don't mind how long it will take. I'm a long-ranged cultivator, so they are very important to me. Take as much time as you need to make sure they are forged well."

Marcus nodded and started to work straight away. During the time he was forging, Krune would stay by the corner with a few spirit stones cultivating. The time to make a Divine Imprint was a lot smaller, after all. It's just that they were the best if done together with the equipment. So he had to wait for when Marcus asked for them.

Back in the mercenary training room, Ao was sparing with Orle Haviu, the Core Formation Realm cultivator that the guild paid to help with his training, and also, a Sword Intent user.

Suddenly, a body came flying and hit the protection formation on a platform used for spares. That body was obviously Ao Sulian.

"Wrong! Why did you raise your sword at the last moment? If you had curved it thirteen degrees to the northeast position, you would have disabled my previous attack without putting pressure on your sword. Let's go again!"

Orle Haviu was at the Late Stages of the Core Formation Realm, so he knew how to control his attacks so that Ao wouldn't get seriously injured. But that didn't mean he was going to take it easy on Ao. He didn't come only because the guild was paying him. He came because he was also part of the mercenary guild of the Yule Continent. When he heard that a Foundation Establishment under the age of forty had comprehended Sword Intent in their Yule Continent guild, he was the first to apply for that job. The only reason why he was accepting that payment was so that he could keep some face.

"Yes!"

Ao slowly stood up and came back to the platform. He knew that it was a fantastic opportunity, so he wanted to make use of it as best as he could.

Orle nodded and attacked again. And after a few exchanges, Ao was sent flying once more.

"Wrong! This time you stepped back a split of a second before your sword skill reached its zenith. Because of this, you left behind a huge flaw that could be exploited for any cultivator with good eyes. Get up, and let's go again!"

In fact, Orle was genuinely impressed with Ao. How many times worse was he when he had Ao's age? He really wanted to see where that guy who appeared out of nowhere could go. He had no doubt that Ao could fight for one of the ten slots for the Foundation Establishment cultivators going to the Divine Path Sect.

Ao wiped the blood on the corner of his mouth and got up again.

"Yes!"

Who knows how many times Ao would be sent flying the next two months.

Yusa was also receiving some training. It was just that! It wasn't battle-related.

"You see the juncture here. If you had used the two stars form to inscribe that Spiritual Energy path, the flow of energy would have been much faster. It would have raised the level of the Runestone Formation and its usefulness."

Halie was teaching Yusa what he knew about Runestone Formations. Although Yusa hasn't accepted him as her master, he simply couldn't resist giving her some pointers when he saw her practicing in their Runestone Formations Hall.

"I see, but if I do that, won't it get in conflict with that Spiritual Energy path close to the center?"

She then pointed at the place she was talking about.

"No, take a look at the two stars form! Can you see that they follow the same principle? That's why even though they look different, the Spiritual Energy flow will still work as it should."

Yusa paid attention to that, and her eyes lit up. She immediately took out another runestone and started to inscribe a formation following the steps that Halie told her.

Halie saw that and nodded satisfied, she only needed a few words, and the rest would come naturally to her. He really wished Yusa stayed behind in their Runestone Formations Hall as his disciple, but he couldn't help but think.

'Her talent for Runestone Formations is far above mine, maybe it really isn't a good idea for me to take her as a disciple. I would run out of things that I could teach her in no time.'

In the end, Makui Planet can only go so far in the field of side occupations, they are lacking way too much information and heritages.

Yusa then caught his attention once more while inscribing that new Runestone Formation.

"You see it here if you had done…"

As for Shinja, she had teleported back to the Ice Continent. During the time she spent looking at the mercenaries battles, she could feel that her Soul Cultivation Technique. The one that had water was one of its elements of focus, progressing much smoother in the Ice Hell Danger Zone than back in the Yule Continent. So she came here to take a few missions of the local mercenary guild while using the place to improve her abilities.

"That Spiritual Ice Metal that the client asked should be around this place. No wonder they had to send a Core Formation to take it. There were too many Demon Beasts around, and I even fought two Early Stages Core Formation Realm Frozen Eagles on my way here. Fortunately, their feathers are worthy of quite some money."

Shinja had also practiced her combat skills every time possible. As long as she didn't start attacking low-level beasts, the Divine Soul demon beasts of the Ice Hell wouldn't come out. Those were the rules agreed between the human leaders outside and the demon beast leaders inside the danger zones. Both sides needed combat experience, so they encouraged combats between foes of the same level. Shinja got used to Krune's habit, so she only killed when extremely necessary, much for the Divine Soul Demon Beasts Happiness that was overseeing the place.

"The spiritual energy here is also a lot easier to be converted into my own type of Elemental Source Energy. I guess I will stay here for a while after I finish this mission."

And just like that, the days passed, the martial gathering was getting closer and closer.

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