Rotell and the others arrived at the edge of the barren hill.
The moment they stepped into the deadened area, countless gazes immediately shifted toward them, before quickly retreating again a moment later.
Nobody wanted to see any unnecessary conflict before the battle for the treasure even began.
This was twice so for the necromancers who were practically drooling, Qucell Included. In her eyes, the only thing that was more alluring than Mira's cute little body was this heart-palpitating heart-shaped heart fruit currently at the peak of the hill.
Mellia, who only reached up to her waist, gave her a look of disdain.
The Soul Shaking Heartfruit continued to faintly pulse atop the twisted tree, practically calling out.
These waves stretched out into the forest, attracting more and more people, which only added to the increasing atmosphere.
Its green glow illuminated the fog, looking both breathtaking and somehow illusory, like a dream ready to pop at any moment.
Rotell silently swept her eyes across the gathered forces.
"…Six parties in total…" she muttered quietly.
The first was naturally the Blue Sea Guild.
These guys seemed to be everywhere…
Nearly thirty practitioners occupied the western part of the slope while carrying a large variety of weapons. Their expressions were fierce and greedy, and many of them continuously stared toward the fruit like a pack of starving wolves.
Rotell met the eyes of one particularly unique figure in the crowd, and to her confusion, he seemed to whisper something to his companion, then slipped away.
She furrowed her brows but didn't think any further.
The second force was a group of masked necromancers, either from the Barak Family or experts from overseas, it was Impossible to tell.
There were only seven of them, but the surrounding practitioners intentionally avoided getting close. Their robes were completely dark grey, with only a few green patterns, and the faint fluctuations from the force composing souls continuously leaked from beneath their sleeves.
The third group, which was the largest group, consisted of over one hundred people who were very clearly a bunch of overseas experts from the Cellistan Continent.
Unlike the others, these practitioners sat atop foreign magic beasts while calmly observing everything with detached expressions.
The fourth force—
The Telltera…
Their massive physiques alone created immense pressure, but when combined with the other dark races that had gathered around these two, they became even more oppressive, like living mountains of barbaric flesh ready to erupt at any moment.
Next—
The fifth was a mixed group of rogue cultivators and hidden mercenaries that looked like they had all managed to sneak in. Even with the Mercenary Alliance's ban in the southern region, some of them still snuck back in under the pretext that they were just free workers with no relationship to the new northern region's mercenary alliance.
As for whether this worked or not, well…
Just ask the pile of corpses that had paved their path in…
And finally, the sixth group.
Rotell's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Dragon Clan?"
Three dragons stood silently near the back of the crowd.
Unlike the five from the main delegation, these three dragons were clearly not members of the dragon clan's royal family. If Rotell had to guess, they were likely mixed blood with a very pure bloodline entrusted with a certain task.
Rotell looked around, but she didn't find any signs of the five figures from the main delegation that she had been taking care of over the past month.
These three figures were extremely large, all standing two and a half meters tall. They had large crystalline horns protruding from their heads, but they were not as clear as Rifrits'. They wore black armor and were surrounded by many smaller forces that seemed to all be from the Dragon Continent, a mixture of those with dragon blood, those loyal, and those that had been taken as slaves to the strong.
Rotell scanned the crowd one last time.
After understanding the general level of their competitors, she decided that it was best to take a wait-and-see approach towards this upcoming battle.
.
It was also at this time when the final group silently arrived.
They appeared without drawing attention, five in total, one small green-haired child and four maids.
The small child, Petra, turned towards the hill with equal parts interest and equal parts disdain.
-
Time passed—
None of them moved, and nobody looked overly nervous.
None of them wanted to be the first to act…
All eyes turned.
The atmosphere gradually became heavier…
They all focused on the hilltop.
The wind blew, and the tree swayed…
The surroundings seemed to quiet down as a wave of pressure began to slowly build.
Time seemed to slow…
The wind soon stopped…
Then, suddenly—
Tock!
BOOM! The first man, a necromancer, moved like lightning!
Swoosh!
One of the masked figures instantly shot toward the hilltop!
Bang!
The battle immediately exploded into chaos, and everyone moved at once!
Spells, spiritual energy, and all kinds of artifacts erupted throughout the barren landscape as all six forces attacked simultaneously.
Harpoons flew, beasts roared, and Soul flames ignited and swept over the land.
One of the Telltera, while exploding forward, smashed his fist directly down through the ground, while the people from the Blue Sea Guild launched hooked chains through the air.
Rotell and the others immediately retreated, choosing to step back instead of joining the initial clash.
"Not yet," Rotell warned calmly, her eyes turning slightly to the side.
Cirsen grinned excitedly while gripping her spear.
If not for Rotell, she would definitely try to rush ahead.
The battle intensified further and further.
Practitioners continuously attempted to approach the twisted tree only to be blasted away by the surrounding attacks.
Blood began to flow as everyone's eyes turned red.
-
Petra and her companions watched the chaos from a safe distance.
They were perched up on a large tree, eating snacks, and refused to participate in the brawl below.
Rose, however, wanted to play. After receiving Petra's distracted nod, she jumped down, leaping off the tree and dynamically swinging on a lower branch before launching herself forward. She landed gracefully, only to immediately run off and disappear into the scuffle with a face full of fighting spirit.
At the same time, Petra was sitting with Lira, playing with her tail.
She looked at the strange appendage and suddenly wondered if she should ask Rose what had happened to hers. The Red Ring Cat Tribe members were born with a normal cat's tail, but in addition, a second, looping tail protruded from the point of origin near the base of their spines. She knew Rose had lost hers, but she didn't know exactly how it had happened.
Well, she had her guesses, but she had never asked for specifics.
That seemed kind of personal, didn't it?
Lira: "…"
Next to Petra sat an unknown child seventy parts similar to herself, and the little green-haired twin was diligently drawing a map of the secret realm.
Petra leaned over to take a look, studying the layout.
According to the currently gathered information, the Royal Ring Secret Realm was structured in concentric, circular zones resembling a massive three-layered bullseye. The outermost ring, where they currently stood, was a perimeter of dense, foggy forest that should filter out most of those who had entered. Moving inward, the terrain gave way to a secondary ring of treacherous, shifting environments that moved slightly up in elevation, a mixture of canyons and small mountains serving as a natural barrier to the core area, which could not currently be accessed. There were three points marked on the map, likely some kind of condition needed to open the core area. As for the core, this area was where the true rewards of the secret realm could be found, but opening it was a challenge, one that perhaps only Rotell and Rolilly knew the answer to.
Petra pursed her lips, then returned her gaze to the fight.
-
As chaos descended, the battle had completely erupted.
This continued for over an hour!
At some point, the surrounding encirclement had begun to close even further.
Waang!
The Soul Shaking Heartfruit suddenly trembled violently.
Humm!
Hummmm!
Hummmmmm!
A horrifying pulse of spiritual energy erupted outwards, and the entire battlefield froze.
Everyone's souls shook as an invisible pressure descended upon the surroundings. They all felt as if their Sea of Consciousness had suddenly solidified, restricting their minds and abilities to think, choking their souls, and causing their bodies to slow down.
Rotell's pupils contracted!
Even at a distance, her body trembled, then refused to move as if stunned.
Qucell staggered as Cirsen fell to her knees.
Only Roe remained strangely calm, seemingly even less affected than Qucell, the fourth-order necromancer.
At the same time…
One group, hidden among the others, suddenly moved!
Swoosh!
Swoosh-swoosh-swoosh!
A dozen shadowy figures hidden among the rogue cultivators erupted forward at a terrifying speed.
Unlike the others who had all been stunned, they were completely unaffected!
"They are Soul Steppers!" Qucell exclaimed in shock.
Soul Steppers were a dark race with the ability to use Soul Force to step through the air at birth.
One of the cloaked figures instantly seized the Soul Shaking Heartfruit before the entire group mixed, then turned, then fled, all leaving in different directions.
A few seconds later, the surrounding forces broke free from their stunned states one after another.
"Stop them!" someone roared!
A wave of anger exploded across the battlefield.
The Telltera charged, followed by the people from the Blue Sea Guild. The three from the Dragon Clan finally moved, and soon, an enormous melee erupted through the forest as each group chased the escaping thieves.
Explosions continuously shook the hill.
Wind and rock were continuously thrown around.
The forest shook and stirred with constant shocks.
The fleeing group of Soul Steppers was quickly overwhelmed by the attacks from every direction, but amidst the chaos—
Swoosh!
Unbeknownst to everyone, the fruit had already vanished!
When they realised this, it was too late!
Nobody knew where it went!
Even this group of Soul Steppers was shocked.
All heads turned.
After nearly half an hour more of fighting, the various forces gradually calmed down and dispersed.
The battle had been bloody, but after the disappearance of the Soul-Shaking Heartfruit, there was no longer a need to continue. Some remained to investigate, others interrogated and threatened, but very soon, they all came to the same conclusion: a third party must have intervened!
While restraining their rage, people began to step back.
Many were injured, several had died, but the treasure itself was nowhere to be found.
Was there any point in continuing?
No, there wasn't…
The large battle ended just like that…
* * *
As the various gathered forces gradually dispersed from the barren hill, Rotell and the others also prepared to leave.
The atmosphere remained slightly tense, but mostly heavy.
Although the Soul Shaking Heartfruit had seemingly vanished, everyone still looked at one another with varying levels of suspicion.
Meanwhile, several figures from the Blue Sea Guild suddenly approached Rotell and her party.
Rotell immediately noticed the tall man walking at the front.
It was the same strange man who had been staring at her earlier, just before the battle.
His long blue and black coat swayed slightly while several hooks and strange oceanic jades hung from his belt. Behind him stood several guild members carrying their iconic harpoons and curved blades.
After reaching her, the man smiled politely.
"Greetings to the first princess."
Rotell's expression remained calm.
"…What do you need from me?"
The man's eyes briefly shifted toward Old Man Roe, before quickly returning to Rotell.
"Our guild wishes to recruit you, of course, if you're willing?"
Rotell immediately frowned.
"No!"
It was without hesitation.
The surrounding members of the Blue Sea Guild sighed almost simultaneously.
"Honestly…" the man muttered. "…We already expected that answer, but couldn't you be a bit more open about it? Hahaha!"
Although he seemed to be laughing, his smile seemed to become even thinner, clearly displeased.
"You should understand that our Blue Sea Guild doesn't—"
"…I don't care!"
Rotell crossed her arms.
Her eyes had become slightly cold.
The atmosphere slowly became subtle.
Rotell calmly continued. "You people from the Blue Sea Guild are actually working under the Ten Thousand Mechanisms Sect, right? It's not you who wants me, it's them."
Silence…
The expressions of some of the surrounding guild members slightly changed, and it was clear that between those who understood and those who didn't, there was a certain difference in status.
As for the leading man, his pupils faintly contracted.
That was definitely not public knowledge.
Impossible!
How did she know?
For a brief moment, several of them exchanged glances. Clearly, they had not expected Rotell to know.
In fact, if not for Elena telling her ahead of time, she would be completely in the dark.
After a long silence, the man slowly smiled again. "…The Hellion Family really does know many things that they shouldn't, hehehe, perhaps the rumors are accurate?"
Rotell did not answer him.
The man shook his head.
Realizing that he could not get anything out of this conversation, he gave up.
The group quietly turned and began to leave.
But before disappearing into the fog-filled forest, one of the men briefly stopped and glanced back toward Rotell with a cold glare, before finally walking away.
-
"…Damn it," Qucell grumbled, while Rotell silently frowned.
Only Roe, in all his great elderly glory, slowly stood up.
Then, to everyone's complete and utter shock, the old man casually reached into his pants and retrieved the Soul Shaking Heartfruit…
…Silence instantly fell!
Qucell's blue eyes widened in shock!
"…You stole it!?"
"How!"
Roe slowly blinked.
"…Umm!"
He nodded.
Apparently, during the moment everyone was stunned by the previous soul-stunning attack, Roe had quietly employed the help of a small earth burrowing beast to slip in and follow a hollow root that stretched just beneath the dead earth to retrieve the fruit before the Soul Steppers ever reached it.
What they had taken was a replica that was replaced when everyone had looked away during the brief moment when the Soul Steppers had first appeared.
After taking it, he simply let everyone continue to fight.
Without hesitation, he handed the fruit toward Qucell.
"Eat it before someone notices…"
Extremely excited, but also slightly disgusted, Qucell nearly trembled in excitement.
Meanwhile—
Mellia's mind completely exploded!
"What!? NO!! Absolutely not! This perverted woman cannot get any stronger! No-no-no! Nooooooooo!"
Cirsen burst into roaring laughter!
Rotell helplessly rubbed her forehead before eventually sighing. "Forget it! …Let's find a place for her to break through first…"
Everyone immediately agreed.