CHAPTER 368: 145 SHAWL TREES AND THE MAGIC MIRROR (PLEASE ADD TO FAVORITES)_3

Carl’s eyes flickered as he also felt the Spiritual Inner Sea bearing a certain pressure from the Soul Seal.

Enslaving a First Rank Late Stage being was not an easy task for him at his current level. Especially a Sal tree with the potential to become Second Order or Third-tier, it took up a significant portion of his spiritual power.

Next, it all depended on what benefits this First Rank Late Stage ’plant’ could bring him.

Carl steadied his mind and asked, "Do you have a name?"

"No," the Sal tree shook. "Sal tree is the name of our kind."

"Master." Having accepted the Soul Seal, the Sal tree, knowing it had no capacity to resist, proactively sought to please, its branches and leaves swaying. "Beneath this island, there are treasures that humans can use, along with some broken Ancient Weapons."

"Weapons?" Carl looked down. "Was this place once a battlefield?"

"No," the Sal tree conveyed telepathically. "It was an arena."

Hmm? Carl raised an eyebrow, then a realization dawned upon him. The center of the island was sunken, with towering surroundings. The sunken area was extensive, and the towering part was terraced. Isn’t that the shape of an arena?

"The Divines of this world would have their Guardians fight here to entertain Them," the Sal tree said. "The victor would receive the Divines’ rewards, while the loser would lose their life. Every Guardian of a Divine took pride in winning the ultimate victory on behalf of their Divine."

?

Carl remembered that he himself was a Guardian. In the Ancient Times, when the Gods were still present, were Guardians merely tools for Their amusement?

After some thought, he asked, "The Guardians you speak of, are they of the Mortal World or the Divine Domain?"

There was a significant difference between the two; Guardians in the Mortal World were Church Knights, while the Divine Domain was the dwelling place of the Divines.

"The Divine Domain," the Sal tree said. "The arena would preserve the exciting battles with Memory Stones, and all the fighters here are of the Second Order or Third-tier."

Third-tier!Certainly not possible to still be in the Mortal World.The Divines actually let Third-tier beings fight to the death for Their amusement; how utterly bored these ’Divines’ must be.

Carl stood amidst the ruins, looking around. As if in a trance, he seemed to see the Gods sitting in the arena’s stands, each with excited faces watching the Guardians fighting fiercely in the arena.

These Guardians of the Divines, from birth, were meant to protect the Divines, to cultivate and grow stronger with all their might. In the Mortal World, they went through layers of selection and entered the Holy Hall. Then, having defeated many opponents in the Holy Hall, they arrived in the Divine Domain. Under the teachings of the Divines, they learned the Guardian’s Cultivation Technique. Was all this effort just so they could die in the arena one day for the entertainment of certain beings?

"Divines..." Carl sighed lightly. "How ridiculous!"

"The tediousness of a long life turns everything fresh and novel into repetition and boredom. Naturally, Divines will try to find any means to entertain Themselves," the Sal tree rustled its leaves. "Master. This arena originally belonged to the Divine Domain, but it fell from there during the War of the Gods. I, too, who was then but a sapling, fell onto this island, took root, and grew until now."

"Hmm..." Carl thought for a moment, then asked, "Since the Divine Domain had Third-tier Guardians, there must be Magic Doors for Legendary Knights to cultivate. Do you know of any?"

"This..." the Sal tree hesitated. "Master, I cannot cultivate human Magic Doors, even those passed down by Divines. Moreover, this is an arena, not a martial training ground. The contents in the Memory Stones are also incomplete... but I remember... There is a Magic Door called ’Holy Breath,’ which seems to be the reward given by the Divines to the victors who first enter the arena. Although it cannot allow a First Order being to advance, it can increase a Guardian’s strength."

Carl’s eyes lit up.

"But there’s a problem," the Sal tree continued. "Holy Breath is a Magic Door cultivated by Guardians; you must have already cultivated a Guardian’s Cultivation Technique to be able to learn it."

To prove its reliability, it had forsaken its arboreal dignity, doing everything possible to gain Carl’s trust.

A Guardian’s Cultivation Technique?The Giant Spirit Breathing Technique is precisely that!

A smile spread across Carl’s face.

「* * *」

Battle Aura originates from life energy. The stronger the life energy, the more potent the Battle Aura. Once one advances to a Legendary Knight, because the essence of life is enhanced, Battle Aura also undergoes a fundamental change. And Holy Breath is capable of further elevating it on this basis. This involves fusing one’s combat will with the physical body and Battle Aura to achieve a qualitative transformation. Powerful Guardians often possessed Battle Aura with the ability to dispel magic and counter various mystical methods. Their defensive power was terrifying; even if struck by a weapon forged by the Divines, they might remain unscathed.

The key is the combat will...

Carl held a Memory Stone, his gaze shifting back and forth. Inside the Memory Stone, several Second Order Guardians were embroiled in fierce combat. It was clear that the arena had some kind of Barrier that constrained their destructive power, yet it still made Carl’s heart tremble.

One of the Guardians wore golden armor and wielded a Long Spear that seemed capable of piercing the void with a single thrust. Another, bare-chested, had a dragon formed of Battle Aura coiling around him, roaring at his opponent. The remaining few, though not as formidable, each possessed their own unique methods.

Their combat lacked the Wizard’s dazzling finesse; it was a raw, bloody melee between Knights.

Strength! Speed! Skill!

Considering their terrifying burst of power, Carl had no doubt that a Second Order Adison could be easily torn apart by them.

And these were merely Second Order Guardians...