Lyra stepped forward without fear But to Number OneÆs surprise Number Two stepped forward as well Master it isnÆt appropriate to indulge in her sexually She was one that I personally invited to the Mountain It will reflect badly upon me if you do so
If Number One hadnÆt been similarly dumbfounded he would have quite enjoyed the bug eyed look this statement brought to the face of Number Four The Master was similarly stunned not expecting that Number Two would so bluntly address this matter Of them all only the humanoid woman didnÆt react maintaining her bow with her eyes demurely lowered
And that finally earned a glimmer of respect from Number One Hm This woman is not simple
Ahem ahem disciple such a joke is inappropriate The MasterÆs gaze turned flinty as he considered Number Two for several long seconds He sighed and shook his head To think a disciple of mine would have so much free time as to fool around with his Master I will need to discipline you later Your focus is clearly lacking To one such as you the Grand Pattern will always remain inscrutable
Number One also stepped forward Master this woman grasped victory in the most recent training camp Although she has been inside the Mountain for a short time she displayed prowess that matches those who have been here for a hundred years In addition there are some unrelated matters IÆd like to
One issue at a time Do you lack patience The Master gave Number One a scathing look This time Number Four appeared quite tickled by the scowl Number One suppressed only after a second It was an appropriate amount of time
A practiced lack of control
Child ignore my pathetic disciples You have done a great thing and now have my attention You have earned five minutes of my time Shall I demonstrate my might for you Perhaps I can show you the origin of the Grand Pattern Or
Actually The woman looked up and smiled Her red violet eyes gleamed I have heard your eminence could distribute Paths I hope that you could bless me with one
A Path The MasterÆs expression became strange
Chapter 1829
Leaving aside the rowdy group of shades behind him Randidly focused on the skinny shade and the lines of energy that it released Unlike the others it didnÆt speak In fact it walked next to Randidly and very obligingly demonstrated its capabilities Each movement was filled with a hundred small adjustments that maintained his few meters of pattern
Observing was an invaluable experience that Randidly appreciated Yet at the same time it was obviously a conscious act by the shade
At one point early in their climb Randidly had finally let curiosity overtake him He spoke softly so as not to drag any of the other shades into the conversation Why are you helping me so directly
He couldnÆt see what expression the shade wore due to its unruly hair but Randidly clearly saw the shade twist its neck and look up the staircase Then it shook its head sadly as though it was unwilling to speak of it However the meaning was still clear the final guardian of the Fifth Step was not someone you could catch up to just like this
To the shade there was no harm in giving Randidly further demonstrations
Congratulations Your Skill Breath of the Cosmos has grown to Level 492
Congratulations Your Skill (Domain) Resonant Fangs of Extinction has grown to Level 500
The Stillborn Phoenix image physicalization continued to dominate the left side of his face Under its influence Randidly could feel the flows of all things in the surrounding space even through the muffling of the mist As he gradually grew familiar with using subtle movements of his body to affect the surroundings he gradually incorporated his Domain into that awareness
If I can connect them
Still he paused in his observations as Sulfur began to tremble Before his eyes a dark grey bulge formed on his forearm almost all the way up to his elbow The bulge gradually swelled until it was the size of a tennis ball Then it popped allowing a gleaming crimson speckled black fang to force its way out A thick ichor dripped down from the gash until Sulfur settled back into place around it With 500 Skill Levels Randidly now had access to five fangs
Sulfur gradually calmed down and the new fang detached itself to join the others in swimming through the spreading tendrils of mist He didnÆt want to use them yet to control the lines of energy but they were useful at keeping the mist at bay This left Randidly with the spare attention to continue to examine the patterns he could create in the surroundings
Congratulations Your Skill Breath of the Cosmos has grown to Level 493
Ten minutes later Randidly grimaced and deactivated his image physicalizations He raised his hand and rubbed the bridge of his nose As expected even if I can see it controlling all the flows without relying on energy or Nether is difficult No wonder only the ninth guardian has any results in this area ItÆs not something you can do without a monstrous amount of Control or Skill Levels
For a while Randidly simply walked The skinny shade walked right behind him keeping abreast and demonstrating his ability to manipulate the surroundings with seemingly normal movements of his body Behind them the Lizakh shade happily boasted and complained in equal measure The long haired shade sighed while the fifth guardian continued to describe how each moment was an opportunity to train The seventh guardian wanted to play a card game but none of the other shades paid her any attention
They walked for another hour in that manner During one of the breaks in utilizing Breath of the Cosmos Randidly examined the surroundings more closely He narrowed his eyes and looked over at the skinny shade we canÆt even make it to the next platform like this can we Is the final guardian that strong
That shade shrugged but its aura was tainted by bitterness apparently this being had never even been able to fight against the one above him Randidly nodded slightly as he raised his gaze and activated Breath of the Cosmos once more The lines of energy spread out before him This energy awareness stretched farther than his actual vision but only a small amount It too was eventually smothered by the presence of mist
His eyes flickered one brilliant and one darkness incarnate And when I start fueling these patterns with energy and not just my bodily movements
Congratulations Your Skill the Maelstrom Entity Approaches has grown to Level 399
Congratulations Your Skill the Maelstrom Entity Approaches has grown to Level 459
Congratulations Your Skill Breath of the Cosmos has grown to Level 510
The mist was blasted away by RandidlyÆs arrival revealing the tenth platform of the Fifth Step The ground was clear but in the sky above the platform almost fifty pyramids tumbled around evenly spaced apart
Randidly pounded his fists together and looked upward as his Nether began to flow toward the shade that waited in the middle His eyes instantly saw that beyond this platform was a ladder that led up to the summit He couldnÆt see the details because the mist thickened enough that all he saw was the blurry peak but his fighting spirit was ignited Finally IÆve made it One more fight
However his expression quickly transformed into shock as he looked at the shade You what are you doing here
Do I know you The woman tilted her head to the side Her features came back even more quickly than the other shades revealing her puzzlement in perfect monochrome relief Her hair hung down to her chin in gleaming strands framing her face Her slim body remained just as he remembered it
Randidly had no idea how to respond to that Eventually he just offered a bitter smile Perhaps not I just feel like there is some positive karma between us You are the final guardian of the Fifth Step WhatÆs your name
The woman clicked her tongue and shook her head Well that proves that you donÆt actually know me I am born of a race that doesnÆt have a home or a history I donÆt have something like a name All I know is that I want to see the summit Somehow I know that if I can manage that everything else will fall into place