A man suddenly appeared on a patch of land. His purple robe looked worse for wear and his long black hair was untied. He looked like he had been through the wringer.

“...It worked,” the man let out a sigh of relief.

The man was Wen Shenhu, one of the three Immortals. Floating above his palm, was a mystical jade token with a tiger engraving. The jade crumbled to dust soon after.

“Teacher’s talisman saved me from the tiger’s mouth,” he looked upwards at the silver aurora and smiled.

Brother Bai and Brother Tao weren’t so lucky it would seem. Or perhaps they weren't that important in the eyes of their sects? Fufufu... Well, then. The grand purpose of finding the Guardian Beast falls on my shoulders alone. Must be Heaven’s Will.

Despite his two compatriots no longer on his side, Wen Shenhu wasn't sad or worried in the slightest. The three weren't that close in the first place. Each of them came from different sects and had been in a scuffle or two. They only worked together because of a common goal.

If he recovered the bull’s core and saved his homeland, the glory would belong solely to him. Wen Shenhu was delighted. His status would be unshakable. Better cultivation resources, prestige, and even discipleship from the legendary masters currently in seclusion seemed likely.

...The escape wore me out more than expected. I should lay low for the time being. No need to rush. That woman is no longer around to stop me.

Wen Shenhu flew away before curious eyes came to this place and there was no trace of him soon after. He felt like an apex predator on a huge hunting ground with no rival and an overabundance of prey.

If I succeed, breaking through the Spirit Venerable Realm will be easy. Earth Monarch, Heaven Sovereign, even Dao Emperor is within possibility!

***

Prince Croix and company had arrived at a border town at Valentine Duchy which would be the starting point of Grand Prix Round 3. They had a little hiccup in their trip. Falmerion, the prince’s juvenile red dragon, was attacked. The culprit was a bunch of Level 3s led by a Level 4. While the party was traveling on a ground carriage, Falmerion was flying overhead, sometimes, he flew a bit far. That was when the ‘bandits’ attacked and captured the dragon.

Naturally, the party gave chase and they managed to rescue Falmerion before anything happened. Apparently, they wanted Falmerion’s blood as a virility medicine. Viers suspected the cultists’ doing at first but it was just stupid people doing stupid stuff.

Well, Falmerion is a true dragon, every bit of his body is worth an extraordinary amount of money. Showing him around invited greedy eyes.

Croix knew this but Falmerion disliked staying inside pocket spaces. Therefore the dragon with a teenager’s temperament was roaming the world.

Viers was thankful his 3 familiars were all obedient good kids.

I don't know if dragon blood truly served as virility medicine or not. Say what you will, but at least crazy Reseh and Baharir’s unethical experiments created some good things with real worth.

After Viers took over the Tower through violent and totally illegal means, the experiments stopped and the test subjects were either sent home after receiving some pittance or found work at the newly christened Rashin city. However, Viers kept the items that had already been made by those experiments. Baharir was obsessed with extending life so there were a lot of items to supplement vitality and herbs for body cultivation.

Viers planned on using the top-quality ones to improve his body cultivation. He wasn't sure if it would work as intended or simply become extra lifespan for him but whatever the case, a benefit. The rest he would hang as bait for the club members as prizes to be won through merit points and the Biome. These treasures could improve a few of the existing Power Spots or for new ones.

Money money money. It’s a rich man’s world~

The top contestants with backing from rich factions used a speedier method to reach the border town. For example, Prince Cassian rode the tamed Rank 4 vulture and Princess Celestine’s team outright teleported to this town. In comparison, the poor (except one) Prince Croix’s team used a slightly enchanted carriage pulled by a semi-magical horse. Adding the dragon kidnapping delay, Croix’s team arrived the eleventh out of sixteen teams.

Viers thought they would be near the bottom so it was better than expected.

He could procure or purchase a more expensive method of transportation but he would be breaking his cover. How would a Level 3 Avel, a commoner Pathseeker get those things?

Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

While Croix and the other two attending the orientation picked a task from the remaining pool, Viers was absent. When the party searched for him, they found him on the top of a town’s bell tower, the highest point in the area. Falmerion was there too beside him.

He was looking toward the east with a crossed arm, east-southeast to be exact. His expression was grimly serious.

“Avel, what’s wrong?” Croix asked after climbing to the top along with Boram and Ciel. It was a simple feat for Level 2 or above.

“See that little patch of silver in the sky?”

Boram followed his Master’s finger and he saw it. Seemed like a silver cloud on a small part of the horizon.

“...What is it? The works of Level 5?” Croix asked.

“I’m not sure. If you think I know what is happening at such distances you give me too much credit, Highness.”

When sufficiently powerful beings acted, or some grand workings in play, sometimes their effect could be seen from very far away. This was not the first time Viers saw mysterious phenomena like this. It was once in a blue moon but these things happened. On occasion, he was even in the thick of it, like Luxore or Valkut.

“Do you think it's over the ocean?” Ciel asked.

The east of the Latias Kingdom lay a vast ocean. Beyond that ocean that rivaled or surpassed the Atlantic, the Xian Continent.

“Won't be visible if it's above the ocean. My estimate is it’s still on land,” Viers replied.

He was especially alert to things like this as of late because of the hunters from the foreign continent. He knew not their numbers, how strong they were, nor what they looked like. He only knew they existed. He had no proof but he strongly suspected the silver sky in the distance was related to them.

Silver sky... Silver Legion... Is there some relation? My money is on yes. I mean, come on...

Unlike dense MCs in Japanese mangas, Viers was sharp enough to tie the relation between two things with obvious relation and not be surprised afterward when it was revealed. It didn't take a lore-crazy fan to know; it was just common sense.

“Should we... do something?” Boram asked. He vaguely felt his Master was more on edge than usual.

“Do what?” Viers asked back. “It’s out of our hands and we've got a race to win.”

Ciel was a bit worried too so she wanted to show her face at the town’s church. To gather information, most likely. Viers went to procure their transportation because the last one’s deal had ended and the driver had other business. Croix and Boram went to gather information and procure supplies. Since Round 3 was sort of a race, speed mattered. They would leave within the hour.

“Make sure the carriage or whatever is big enough for five. We have to bring the duke’s man with us,” Croix reminded him.

It was like Round 1, however, unlike Round 1 the officer’s purpose wasn't to guard the contestant’s lives. They were the eyes and ears of the duke to grade how the contestants solved the problems. In fact, if the officer was hurt, the group would suffer a penalty. If the officer ended up dead, the group would instantly fail the Grand Prix so the group had to protect the proctors.

When Viers was alone, he pulled a card from his pocket. Before his fingers entered, there was no card there. The card with the picture and words of The Fool. He put it on his ear like a telephone.

“Hanged Man, I want you to begin stocking up foodstuff, medicine, raw materials, and battle items. If you think it will be in demand when in a crisis, buy them. It doesn't matter if you have to use up all of our reserve money. Move as if you know there will be a time of turmoil in front of us. Adjust your deals and transactions with that in mind. Cut the losses early if you must. Go.”

Like a doomsday prepper, Viers began to move. The CEO had also handed down the order from the top of the company, dragging it along for the ride.

Viridis’ cache is full. Defenses reinforced. New defense mechanisms have been built... Hmn, is there something I missed?

With such thought, Viers made arrangements for the party to go to the place where Croix picked the party’s first problem. After he’d done his job, he waited for the arrival of his teammates. Viers looked like he was meditating but he was actually using the Grid, fighting a deadly battle against Baharir’s replica.

Since a storm was coming, Viers was trying to sharpen his skills even for a little bit. In the meantime, the others gathered. He also saw the proctor, someone he had seen before.

“Why are you here?” Ciel grumbled at Tinade, a Level 4 at the service of House Valentine. The last time Viers saw the muscular woman she was wearing a maid uniform. Not this time. “Everyone else got a Level 3 proctor.”

“Duke’s orders I’m afraid. Rest assured that I’m not here to rig the competition in your favor or against you.”

“Glad to hear it,” Croix extended his hand for a handshake. “Fairness is paramount, Is everyone ready? All aboard.”

***

A robed man entered a dark room. From the dark, he saw a pair of red eyes.

“Red Eyes. You have returned.”

“Yes, Master. Where did you go?”

“From a meeting with the posh of the Harkelan Empire. They are like children crying for help. Hfufufu.”

“I see. So it’s our turn then? Rumors have gone around. A lot of other disciples are doing a frenzy of last-minute training. It’s been a long time since we mobilized.”

“Sallustia is gone. So are the foreign forces. The Church has its uses sometimes. The upper brass of every organization worth their salt will know within the week.”

“So Harkelan will make the first move. Those wolves only have one target, Latias. My question is will they go for the flesh or the jugular?”

“Sharp as always. Look.”

Red Eyes watched the map on the table.

“...Bold.”

“You’ll be taking part in one of the most difficult areas. Distinguish yourself to silence the voice that whispers about your failure in Zetel.”

Red Eyes’ Master stabbed a knife at the Valentine Duchy.

“I’m no negotiator but battle is right up my alley. When do I leave?”

“Now.”