Ch. 861..870

Chapter 861 - 861 – Hidden Power Of The World

Gravis couldn’t believe what he had just heard. He was supposed to become a Major Circulation Immortal Emperor first? Wasn’t that overkill for only a level five Law? That’s the Cultivation Realm when one concentrated on level six Laws, not level five Laws.

Gravis’ brows furrowed as a gleam appeared in his eyes. ’Could it be that the Major Law of Mixed Elements is a level six Law? Shouldn’t it be a level five Law by all intents and purposes?’

’Also, if it is a level six Law, doesn’t this mean that this tree knows a level six Law? Shouldn’t that already be the criteria for ascending from this world?’

Gravis remained in front of the tree.

He had to know.

PACK!

Suddenly, a root grabbed Gravis. It came so fast that Gravis couldn’t even react.

BANG!

Gravis was violently picked up by the root and thrown to the ground outside of the central area of the Law Comprehension Areas. Several of Gravis’ bones broke as his body created a crater.

That was not a playful shove.

However, it also wasn’t an attack.

It was simply a very rough shove, similar to a reprimand.

"Count yourself lucky that you are still alive!" a voice appeared in Gravis’ mind.

Gravis looked over at the origin of that voice while he lay on the ground. It was a tree from the Magma Law Comprehension Area.

However, when Gravis inspected that tree more closely, he realized that he couldn’t feel its power. This meant that this was also an Immortal Emperor. Yet, the pressure of this tree wasn’t even close to the pressure of the central tree or the root network.

Gravis inspected all the other trees inconspicuously with his Spirit Sense and realized that nearly all trees in all the Law Comprehension Areas were Immortal Emperors.

’How have I not noticed this previously?’ Gravis thought as he gritted his teeth. This was a mistake that he shouldn’t have made.

Gravis had assumed that the Major Law of the Mixed Elements was a level five Law, but that obviously wasn’t true. The only explanation was that the Major Law of Mixed Elements was a level six Law.

"Is the Law of the Mixed Elements a level five or level six Law?" Gravis asked the tree that had just gripped him.

"The individual Mixed Elements are level five Laws, and the combined Law is a level six Law," the tree said. "You are lucky that you are still alive after disturbing our ancestor’s Cultivation as a mere Immortal King."

Gravis frowned, but he also sighed. "I believed that I had enough level four Laws to trade. However, I had thought that the Mixed Elements Law is a level five Law."

"That you are still alive is proof that you know the Major Law of the Elements," the tree answered. "This means that our ancestor believes that you have a chance of comprehending this Law in the future."

Gravis nodded. He had made a major blunder just now. However, this blunder didn’t come without its own rewards. Gravis had learned a lot about the beasts just by his short conversation just now.

Gravis had learned that the Major Law of the Mixed Elements is a level six Law, and he had also learned about the frightening power of beasts.

This central tree was probably one of the most powerful beings in this entire world. It knew a level six Law, which was necessary to ascend to the highest world. The only thing keeping it back was probably that it had to wait for longer to become powerful enough.

Gravis looked at the central tree with furrowed brows. ’This single tree is already more powerful than probably any ancestor from any Peak Sect. Even worse, it could be that it cultivates just like Meadow. Maybe it already knows several level six Laws and is only waiting for its longevity to run out before it ascends.’

’On top of that, there is also this root network that felt equally as powerful. I believed that there are several plants that keep watch over the underground, but that might actually not be the case.’

A cold shiver ran down Gravis’ spine. ’This root network might actually be so powerful and huge that it encompasses the entire beast territory. It sounds ridiculous, but Meadow was also nearly as big as the entire world back then.’

’No wonder no human has ever managed to infiltrate the beasts. They needed to get past the eyes of a Peak Immortal Emperor.’

"I have not been informed of this prior," Gravis transmitted to the tree. "Where am I? I thought this was just a Law Comprehension Area for some level four Laws and one level five Law."

Gravis had to phrase his question like this so that he didn’t appear like he knew nothing.

The tree scoffed with its transmitted voice. "Whoever told you that wants you to die. When you get back, kill that coward," the tree said. The tree didn’t even think about the fact that Gravis had done all of this on purpose. After all, no sane beast would disturb the ancestor like this.

"So, where am I?" Gravis asked.

"This is the Law Comprehension Area for the level five Laws of Mixed Elements and the level six Law of Mixed Elements," the tree transmitted. "As you know, these Law Comprehension Areas are under the supervision of the nine Ancestors. You have just disturbed one of the nine Ancestors in their Cultivation. So, be happy that you are still alive."

"One of the nine Ancestors!?" Gravis asked in shock. This made it appear like he knew what the nine Ancestors were, but that was not the case.

However, Gravis didn’t need to play up his surprise since it was very genuine. Gravis was shocked when he heard that there were nine Ancestors.

Nine.

Nine Peak Immortal Emperors!?

Even more, at least one of them already knew level six Laws!?

After some seconds, Gravis’ eyes narrowed. ’The beasts are obviously not as disadvantaged as I believed,’ Gravis thought. ’I thought that all of the beasts are on the defensive, but that might not be the case. Maybe it’s not that the beasts are helpless but that the beasts actually want to keep the current status quo.’

Suddenly, Gravis’ expression changed again. ’Wait. I just made the same mistake again. I saw the power of one side and immediately assumed that they are the more powerful side. There is a very real possibility that the humans also have some hidden trump cards.’

’What if potential Ascenders remained to safeguard their Peak Sect until their longevity is close to being used up? Humans are not like beasts, and humans value connections and relationships very highly. It’s very possible that someone that could ascend would remain in this world for a long time to protect their Sect from being extinguished.’

’These hidden Ancestors are probably not involved in the daily affairs of their Sect, but as soon as their Sect is in danger, they would jump out. Maybe they concentrate on comprehending all the other level four and level five Laws that they can find. This would give them an insane foundation of Laws for when they arrive in the highest world.’

Gravis’ eyes gleamed. ’Is this also one of the reasons why this world is so powerful? The Ascenders not only fulfill the criteria for ascending but concentrate on comprehending Laws for even longer. Like this, they would truly be the most powerful Ascenders possible.’

’If that is true, then both sides have an insane amount of hidden power, far more than the land and sea beasts in the middle world in relation. There’s even a chance that the nine Ancestors all know level six Laws and that other Peak Immortal Emperors are known under a different title.’

’This world is definitely not as simple as the last one,’ Gravis thought. ’The last world wanted to keep the war going, but this one might actually want to end it.’

’However, Arc wouldn’t allow for one side to win just like that. Yet, none of them know that. They believe that they can destroy the other side by accumulating more power than them and exploding.’

’This is an arms race.’

Gravis sighed. ’However, right now, all of this is only conjecture. I can’t be sure about any of this without some concrete information.’

Gravis’ eyes wandered to the tree that had thrown him away. ’But my plan hasn’t changed. I still want to exchange for something.’

’That tree might have shoved me with quite some aggression, but they have also talked to me after it. This one is much more approachable.’

Chapter 862 - 862 – True Power In One's Hand

Gravis looked at the tree with interest and stood up. After dusting himself off, Gravis walked over to that tree.

"I would like to trade for some of your fruits," Gravis said.

The tree scoffed again. "Give it up, boy. You’re too weak for me."

"I know that," Gravis said with a smirk. "However, I’m sure that I have several level four Laws you would be interested in."

"What Laws can you know that could interest me?" the tree asked with a disdainful voice.

"What if I tell you that I know over 20 level four Laws?" Gravis said. Of course, Gravis actually knew over 50, but that would be overkill.

"Over 20!?" the tree asked in shock. "Are you lying to me?"

"I’m not," Gravis said with his Law of Honesty. Gravis’ Will-Aura was weaker than the tree’s Realm, which meant that the tree could see that this was the Law of Honesty.

The tree remained silent for several seconds, just trying to comprehend what Gravis had said.

How was this possible!?

Early Minor Circulation Immortal Kings only knew two level four Laws on average. How could this one know over ten times as much?

After some seconds passed, the tree’s senses inspected Gravis closely. It tried to see anything special about him, but he just appeared like any other Black Demon. Nothing was out of place.

"That might change things," the tree said slowly. "I assume you are interested in Law Comprehension and not Realm increase?"

Gravis nodded. "I am interested in Law Comprehension," Gravis said.

"Then we both want the same thing," the tree said. "However, I first need to check if you know the Laws I want. Tell me the Laws you know."

"No," Gravis said directly. "I don’t want to unveil my true power to anyone. How about you tell me the category you are most interested in, and I will tell you if I know some Laws from that category?"

The tree felt a bit displeased that Gravis didn’t tell it his Laws, but it also understood where Gravis was coming from. Unveiling one’s Laws gave the opponent the opportunity to counter them. However, the tree was obviously not interested in Gravis’ demise, which made Gravis’ actions appear a bit too careful.

"You know the Major Law of the Elements, right? After all, you wouldn’t be alive right now if you didn’t know it," the tree asked.

Gravis nodded.

"Do you know some Battle Laws for Inferno or Graphite?"

"Yes," Gravis said.

"What do you mean with yes?" the tree asked. "This was an either-or question."

"I know several Laws for both of them," Gravis answered.

This surprised the tree. Gravis knew Laws for both of them, and even several at that?

"Which ones?" the tree asked.

"I can tell you, but you can’t ask for any of my other Laws," Gravis said.

"Fine," the tree grumbled. This beast was way too careful for its own good.

"Inferno’s Heat, Decomposition, Efficiency, Explosion, and Concentration."

"Graphite’s Gravity, Mass, Creation, Manipulation, and Efficiency."

The tree fell back into a state of shock.

Ten Battle Laws!?

For only two Elements!?

The tree quickly made some calculations and came to a terrifying conclusion.

If this beast had an Avatar for the Major Law of the Elements, his base elements would already all be on the level of level five Laws. Then, with all of these Battle Laws, this beast’s Inferno and Graphite Elements would reach a terrifying power. It wouldn’t reach the power of a level six Law, but it was close.

The tree’s senses locked onto Gravis with intensity. This was an exceptionally powerful beast, even for a Black Demon. No wonder the Ancestor didn’t kill him.

This beast might become another Ancestor in the future.

Lastly, this beast already knew ten Battle Laws for Inferno and Graphite. When these two Elements were mixed together, they would turn into Magma, which was a level five Law. However, the Battle Laws for Inferno and Graphite could still be used with Magma to a certain extent.

If this beast comprehended Magma and upgraded his Avatar from the Major Law of the Elements to the Element of Magma...

The tree realized that this trade might end in the creation of one of the most powerful Minor Circulation Immortal Kings the world had ever seen.

"So, are you interested?" Gravis asked after he saw that the tree remained silent for a while.

"Yes," the tree answered. "However, this trade will be conducted with True Cultivation."

Gravis furrowed his brows. "True Cultivation? I haven’t heard about that before."

Gravis knew that this question was taking a risk, but he was sure that he was nearly beyond any suspicion right now. He had just talked to one of the Ancestors. This tree probably trusted its Ancestor unconditionally, and if its Ancestor didn’t see a problem with Gravis, there obviously wasn’t a problem with Gravis.

"True Cultivation trading is not a simple exchange of matter," the tree explained without any suspicion. "You will be infusing a part of your body with your Laws and your being and cut that part off. Like this, the cut-off part will demonstrate these Laws with great clarity."

Gravis frowned.

He knew what that meant.

"So, you want me to actually cut off pieces of my Cultivation Realm," Gravis said.

"Yes," the tree answered.

This was not a simple trade.

Usually, when a beast lost part of its body, it simply had to regenerate it. After all, its Cultivation was inside its mind and Beast Core, which shared the same place. However, by infusing one’s Cultivation in a body part and cutting it off, it was like one was cutting off a part of their own power.

In short, if Gravis cut off 20% of his body, he would lose 20% of his Cultivation. Gravis would still remain an Early Minor Circulation Immortal King, but that was only because he had already made great strides in that Realm.

Gravis was about 98% on his way to the Mid Minor Circulation Immortal King Realm. This meant that if Gravis cut off 98% of his body after regrowing it a couple of times, he would fall back into the Peak Immortal Realm.

This was a serious trade with a serious cost.

However, Gravis’ eyes shone. ’This is perfect!’

"I am 98% of my way to the next level," Gravis said. "I am willing to fall down to the beginning of the Peak Immortal Realm."

The tree was shocked. That was far more than the tree had imagined.

However, in exchange, Gravis would receive enough fruits to comprehend the entire Law up to the point where one required tempering.

Comprehending a level five Law took an insane amount of time.

The tree realized that Gravis was probably very confident in his power, with good reason. He was willing to sacrifice nearly two levels to save over 10,000 years of time.

Something like this was very daring, but it would help in the long term.

"Fine," the tree said. "I am willing to trade three Life Fruits for that."

"Only three?" Gravis asked.

"Do you know what Life Fruits are?" the tree asked.

"Aren’t they just your normal fruits?" Gravis asked.

"No, Life Fruits are different," the tree said. "Life Fruits are the most powerful fruits, and each loss will also drain our Cultivation Realm. I am trading 3% of the progress of my level."

Gravis’ eyes widened. "That’s a bit much," Gravis said.

This was an Immortal Emperor!

It needed far more than 10,000 Early Minor Circulation Immortal Kings to equal one Early Minor Circulation Immortal Emperor. 3% of progress already equated to hundreds of Early Minor Circulation Immortal Kings.

"You have shown me your willingness to sacrifice yourself for power, and it has inspired me," the tree said. "This is a fair exchange."

Gravis nodded. "Then, I will accept."

Gravis became bigger and retrieved his sabers out of his scales. After that, he became smaller again and begun cutting away.

Gravis cut off his legs first and then went on to cut off four arms. This was already equal to 40% of his body weight.

This was the first time that Gravis cut off parts of his body while infusing them with his Cultivation. Normally, Gravis didn’t even feel it when he lost an arm or a leg, but this time, it was different.

Gravis felt himself become weaker and tired. It was like he was losing parts of himself.

As soon as one of Gravis’ parts fell to the ground, some roots came out and pulled them underground.

Time passed.

BANG!

Gravis fell back to the Peak Immortal Realm, but he didn’t stop. He continued hacking away until he was on the verge of falling to the Late Major Circulation Immortal Realm.

After Gravis was done, one of the branches of the tree plucked three shiny, red-brown fruits. Just their presence alone elicited fluctuations of Laws.

Gravis took the fruits and looked at them with intensity. ’These are over 10,000 years of time I’m holding in my hands, and what have I paid for it?’

Gravis looked at the corpse of Spear Mountain in his Spirit Space.

’Nothing. Just a corpse.’

Gravis nodded at the tree and left. The tree also didn’t say anything else.

On the way out, Gravis also nodded to the brown snake. Initially, Gravis had thought that this brown snake was the protector of this place. However, it was obviously only a clerk. This Law Comprehension Area was probably the most secure place in the beast territory. Anyone that barged in here would be confronted with a ton of Immortal Emperors and an Ancestor.

After flying for a while, Gravis entered the ground again.

When he was outside everyone’s senses, he absorbed Spear Mountain’s corpse and reached the peak of the Early Minor Circulation Immortal King Realm again.

Then, Gravis retrieved the three fruits and looked at them with intensity.

’I have a level five Law in my hand!’

Chapter 863 - 863 – Money

Gravis looked at the three fruits in his hands with intensity. This was a level five Law, his first level five Law!

However, Gravis resisted the urge to swallow them immediately and put them into his Life Ring. There were two things he had to check first, but even that had to wait.

’I’m done with the beast territory for now,’ Gravis thought. ’I managed to increase my Will-Aura even more, and I gained these invaluable fruits. Now, it’s time to prepare for Siral’s tribulation.’

When Gravis thought about Siral’s tribulation, his eyes narrowed, and his heart shuddered. ’Five levels above myself. On top of that, this is an Immortal King from the Core Region, which means that they will be very powerful even for their Realm.’

’This reminds me too much of the time when I challenged the middle Heaven. It feels absolutely insane and suicidal to challenge someone that powerful.’

’However, I have to do this. If I want to challenge Arc in the future, I have to get through this. I need to push my strength to its absolute limits if I ever want to fight Arc.’

Gravis knew very well what kind of risk he was taking. Winning against someone five levels above himself seemed impossible, but Gravis had to make the impossible possible.

’Let me return to the human territory first,’ Gravis thought as he activated the Life Ring. Gravis currently didn’t know where exactly he was, but Siral’s location in comparison to his own would help him find the correct direction.

"Siral, go to a safe area without any Cultivators close to the frontline. I’m about to return," Gravis transmitted to his Life Ring.

"Yes, Master," the Life Ring answered.

After that, Gravis came out of the ground and shot towards the west. Apparently, he had traveled to the east in the past 200 years.

It took a couple of days, but Gravis arrived near the border of the beast territory again. Just as before, Gravis entered the ground and went as far down as was possible for him. Then, he traveled towards the northwest.

A couple of hours later, Gravis arrived in front of the gigantic root network again. Gravis had to stop before the root network since it didn’t react to him.

"I want to pass," Gravis transmitted to the roots.

A powerful sense locked onto Gravis and inspected him closely.

"Reason?" it asked.

"I want to temper myself against a very powerful human," Gravis said with his Law of Honesty.

The fact that Gravis knew the Law of Honesty made it easier for both of them.

CRRR!

One root shrunk to let Gravis pass, and he continued on his journey without another interruption. The root network didn’t even ask Gravis any specifics. In its eyes, Gravis was a beast, and if he wanted to temper himself against a powerful human, so be it. That was better than tempering himself against other beasts.

The root enlarged behind Gravis again, but that didn’t matter.

Now, Gravis was below the battlefield of humans and beasts. This was the biggest meat grinder in the world, and Gravis had to remain hidden.

Thus, Gravis’ journey continued, and after about a week, Gravis left the battlefield behind. However, this obviously wasn’t enough. The military stations of humans would be just above him, and he couldn’t surface now. There were probably several Immortal Emperors and Beast Crystals.

Another two weeks of digging passed until Gravis arrived below Siral.

BANG!

Gravis came out of the ground in his human form. Running around as a beast was obviously not a good idea.

"Welcome back, Master," Siral said with a respectful bow.

Gravis only nodded. "It should be around 150 years until your tribulation arrives, correct?" Gravis asked.

"Yes, Master," Siral said. "I can’t know the exact date of my tribulation, but it should happen sometime in the next 200 years."

"Alright," Gravis said. "What did you manage to get from all the things I told you to sell."

"I have managed to procure a little bit more than 82 million Immortal Stones," Siral said.

Gravis nodded. "Well done. Hand them over."

SHING! SHING!

Siral immediately built a connection with Gravis’ Spirit Space. Normally, no one traded like this since it opened one’s Spirit Space to a devastating attack, but Gravis had no reason to fear Siral. After all, Siral was still under the effects of the Life Ring.

The Immortal Stones were quickly put into Gravis’ Spirit Space, and Gravis saw his collection of Immortal Stones growing substantially.

Gravis scratched his chin while he looked at his mountain of Immortal Stones. ’I have nearly 200 million Immortal Stones. If I consume all of them, I should be able to become a Mid Major Circulation Immortal King.’

However, Gravis’ expression slowly turned into a complex one. ’This is the accumulated wealth of the entire Sect Alliance, a group with over a hundred Immortal Kings. Sure, it is a lot of money, but...’

’I earned far more than that in only a hundred years in the highest world,’ Gravis thought with a complex expression. ’Back then, I was an Early Minor Circulation Immortal. Now, I’m an entire Realm higher, but all my combined rewards from all my tempering experiences only amount to this.’

’Even as an Immortal King, this amount of money makes me feel like I’m incredibly rich. However, if I were back in Opposer City, I wouldn’t feel like this.’

’Virtualization Arrays for level three Laws cost ten million Immortal Stones for a hundred years. However, I’m obviously not interested in level three Laws anymore.’

’Virtualization Arrays for level four Laws cost a hundred million Immortal Stones for a hundred years. I would barely be able to buy one for 200 years. Then, I would be completely broke.’

’Additionally, 200 years wouldn’t be enough. I need 500 years at least for a level four Law. This means that if I want to comprehend a level four Law, I would need to spend at least 500 million Immortal Stones.’

’And level five Laws?’ Gravis thought bitterly. ’This is so far above my budget that I don’t even need to think about it. Sure enough, Virtualization Arrays are the most luxurious Law Comprehension methods.’

’Only when I am in the real world and realize how hard it is to get resources do I actually realize how insanely expensive Virtualization Arrays are. It’s basically unimaginable to earn enough money as an Immortal King here to buy the Virtualization Arrays for Laws that are actually useful to me.’

Gravis sighed. ’Everything would be so much easier if I could just unveil the secrets of World Weapons. Sadly, I’m not powerful enough to defend myself against the greed of others. Additionally, there is a possibility that there are one or more Cultivators in the world that can also create World Weapons. If I unveil the secret, they would feel like they would lose their monopoly.’

’These Cultivators are surely Peak Immortal Emperors.’

Gravis shook his head. ’Stop thinking about this stuff! It’s depressing!’ Gravis thought. ’I should check the fruits first.’

"Siral," Gravis said. "I will be gone for maybe a couple of hours. Just wait here for my return."

"Yes, Master."

Then, Gravis took out Arc’s emblem and broke it.

Was there a better person to ask about these fruits than Arc?

Chapter 864 - 864 – Blonde Guy

Gravis appeared in Arc’s clearing.

THUNK! SPLAT!

However, Gravis immediately walked against a hard wall.

Gravis’ eyes involuntarily closed as he rubbed his nose with teary eyes. Yes, even Immortal Kings weren’t immune from tearing up when their nose was punched. It just happened.

’Wait, why is my hand wet?’ Gravis thought as he looked at his hand.

Red and brown juice and mush.

Gravis’ eyes widened in horror.

He had carried one of his fruits in his hands to ask Arc about them, but he had just been teleported in front of a wall.

His fruit had been smashed!

Gravis’ mind was going wild as his Will-Aura involuntarily activated due to stress. Then, he quickly looked around the clearing.

He saw Arc with a smirk on his face and a red-brown fruit in his hands.

Gravis became confused again and looked at the remains of his fruit in his hand.

There was no Life Energy inside them.

Gravis gritted his teeth. "Fuck you, Arc! That’s not funny!" he shouted as he pointed at Arc aggressively.

And then, Arc broke down in laughter.

Gravis had just thought that he had lost one of his fruits! He had paid a lot for them, and they had been his gateway to his first level five Law. They were really important to him!

And then, this asshole played a prank on him and switched the fruit, making Gravis think that he had lost one of them!

Gravis only glared at Arc for several seconds, but Arc continued laughing.

"Stop laughing!" Gravis shouted.

That only made Arc laugh harder.

Splash!

Suddenly, Gravis felt a wet hand wiping something onto his clothes. Gravis immediately turned to his left and realized that the wall he had run into wasn’t a wall.

A tall, blonde man had wiped off the fruit juice from his robes and had cleaned his dirty hand on Gravis’ robes. The man had no expression. It was just like he was mindlessly cleaning his hand.

"Oh, sorry," Gravis said as he realized that he had run into another guy and not a wall.

"No problem," the guy answered. "You should get used to teacher’s weird sense of humor."

While Arc continued laughing, Gravis looked at the man some more. "Hey, weren’t you the guy that invited me to this place?" Gravis asked.

Yes, this was the same person that had stopped the time around Gravis outside the Unrestrained Sect to hand him Arc’s emblem.

The man nodded. "I also remember you," he said. "Your particular personality, Laws, and body left quite an impression in my mind."

Gravis glanced at Arc for a second and scoffed. Then, he turned back to the man as he grabbed his fruit from Arc’s hand.

"Would you be so kind as to answer two questions of mine regarding this fruit?" Gravis asked.

Arc stopped laughing as he looked at Gravis with furrowed brows. Meanwhile, Gravis only smirked at Arc. ’You want to play a prank on me, huh? Well, seems like we won’t be talking this time. Shoulda thought about that before deciding to screw me over.’

The man looked at the fruit and also at Gravis with a side-eye. He was a bit surprised that Gravis seemed completely calm. One had to know that he was the eldest disciple of Arc and one of the world’s most powerful beings.

If any other person or beast had run into him and dirtied his robes with fruit juice, they would be apologetic beyond comparison. Meanwhile, Gravis just waved it off and also asked him some questions.

This interested the blonde man, and he nodded.

Gravis’ smirk intensified when he saw that the blonde guy agreed.

"How long does it take until the effect of the fruit vanishes, and is it damaging to my future if I take them?" Gravis asked.

Both of these things were important to know. The first part was important since it decided if Gravis ate the fruits before or after his tempering. The second question was important for his future. After all, if something showed a Law with too much clarity, it would make it far harder to comprehend Laws with normal Law Comprehension Areas in the future.

The guy looked at the fruit. "You met Narcissus?" he asked.

Gravis was a bit confused, but the small tree in the center of the Law Comprehension Areas appeared in his mind. "That small tree in the middle of the Law Comprehension Areas?" he asked.

The blonde guy furrowed his brows. "You’re lucky you’re still alive," he said.

"Why?" Gravis asked in surprise.

"Narcissus knows several Soul Laws, and he can easily tell humans from beasts," he said.

When Gravis heard that, he felt like his heart was gripped by terror.

Didn’t that mean that the tree knew that Gravis was a human?

Then, how was he still alive?

"How am I still alive?" Gravis asked the blonde man in shock.

"Narcissus is my second brother," the man said. "He is also part of this clearing, and he probably felt teacher’s emblem on you. He knew that you were part of our clearing and didn’t kill you."

Gravis had totally forgotten that sufficiently advanced Soul Laws could be used to check one’s Spirit. However, he couldn’t be blamed for that. These level five and level six Soul Laws were supremely rare. The chances were tiny of someone knowing them.

However, as soon as Gravis thought about that, the root network came back into his mind.

"What about that root network that surrounds the beast territory?" Gravis asked.

"That’s also Narcissus," the man answered. "His main body resides in the Law Comprehension Area you visited while his roots surround the beast territory."

This shocked Gravis quite a bit. That gigantic root network and that tiny tree were the same being?

So, Gravis had actually never fooled Narcissus. Narcissus had known from the very beginning that Gravis was a human.

This terrified Gravis.

He had believed that he managed to sneak past the mighty, sleeping lion, but the lion had actually noticed him the whole time. The lion simply didn’t attack him.

This meant that Gravis’ life hadn’t been in his hands but in the hands of someone else.

’Why does this keep happening!?’ Gravis thought with gritted teeth. ’I keep underestimating the powers in every fucking world! I always believe that I am in control, but I’m not! How often have I made this mistake by now!?’

’I just never fucking learn!’ Gravis thought aggressively to himself.

"Chill out, Gravis," Arc said from the side with an eye roll. "Someone needs to know the level six Law of the Soul to see that you have a Will-Aura. No sane person would think that there would be anyone in this world that knows this Law. After all, if someone knew a level six Law, they would have already left the world, right?"

The man also looked at Gravis with a complex expression. Did Gravis actually blame himself for that? No one could have seen something like this coming.

Did this guy have control issues? Does he try to take control over forces that are far beyond his reach? It was impossible to foresee something like this.

Gravis realized that the words of the two of them made sense, but he somehow still blamed himself. Anything that wasn’t in Gravis’ control was a danger to him. Freedom meant having control over oneself, and if one didn’t have control over oneself, one didn’t have freedom.

So, to attain true freedom, Gravis needed control over his life, which was also the main reason why Gravis continued cultivating. Sure, freedom was also a feeling, but that was only perceived reality. Gravis also wanted freedom in physical reality.

’It’s still too early to control everything,’ Gravis thought. ’However, it still frustrates the shit out of me!’

SHING!

Gravis’ fruit vanished again as it reappeared on Arc’s finger. The fruit rotated on Arc’s finger like a ball. "Anyway, you wanted to know more about-"

PACK!

And the fruit was gone as Gravis grabbed it again, leaving behind a surprised Arc.

Gravis looked at the man. "So, can you please answer my questions?"

Arc grimaced but sighed. ’This guy! Is he still mad about my prank?’

The man looked at the fruit again. "This is a Life Fruit for the level five Law of Magma. Eating one of them will show the entire Law for 20 years."

Gravis’ eyes shone. ’Only 20 years? So, I can ingest the fruits before the tempering.’

"Do you know more than 20 level four Laws?" the man asked.

Gravis nodded.

The man also nodded. "Do you know a level five Law?"

"No," Gravis answered.

"Then, I would suggest eating one. After that, think about what you have learned for 50 years. If you have a second one, do the same thing again. If you have a third one, only ingest it when you are about to enter tempering. The fruit will help you in comprehending the Law of Magma during your fight."

Gravis nodded solemnly. This was important information!

"What about their effect on my future Law Comprehension?" Gravis asked.

"With a ratio of one to five, you are still in the clear," the man said. "If you use these fruits to comprehend a level five Law, try to comprehend the next five level five Laws without their help. After that, you can use the fruits again. Like this, your Law Comprehension won’t be affected."

Gravis nodded and bowed politely. "Thank you for your help, senior," he said.

Then, Gravis took out Arc’s emblem and smirked at Arc again.

Arc only sighed.

And Gravis was gone.

BANG!

Suddenly, the stump below Arc shot forward as he landed on his butt.

Then, Arc only started laughing.

Behind him stood Gravis with a smirk. He had broken a different emblem and teleported behind Arc. After that, he had kicked Arc’s chair away.

"Ya think I’ll let you go just like that?" Gravis asked with a laugh.

Meanwhile, the blonde guy just turned around and left without an expression.

He just couldn’t deal with Arc’s humor.

Chapter 865 - 865 – Danger Zones

Gravis talked with Arc for another two hours until it was time for him to return. His questions regarding the Law Comprehension Fruits had been answered.

SHING!

Gravis broke Arc’s emblem and returned to the place he had left. Siral had waited at the same spot.

"Welcome back, Master," Siral said respectfully. Siral didn’t question where Gravis had gone. After all, it wasn’t a servant’s place to ask about their Master’s whereabouts.

Gravis nodded. "Purchase a good map of the world," Gravis said. "Just the locations of the Peak Sects isn’t enough if I want to move through these areas. 20 million Immortal Stones is the maximum that you should pay for a map. Any maps that are even more accurate are not worth the money."

"Yes, Master," Siral said as he teleported away.

Gravis needed a good map of the Nine Elements Sect’s territory, and a map of the world would be even better. However, the chances that Gravis could find a map that included all the different territories was low. Having a good map of the Nine Elements Sect was already good enough. If Gravis ever needed a good map for a different territory, he could simply send Siral there to buy one locally.

It took Siral over three days to return, but he returned with a great map.

"Master," Siral said with a bow. "I have scouted out different cities to see if I can find a trustworthy map. I also had to be careful that no one followed me. 20 million Immortal Stones is something that even Major Circulation Immortal Kings are interested in. I apologize that it has taken so long."

Gravis nodded. "Good job. Show me the map," he said.

An image was projected into Gravis’ head.

It was a world map, but the area of the Nine Elements Sect was by far the clearest. The areas for the other Peak Sects showed a couple of High-Grade Sects and significant cities, but the area of the Nine Elements Sect showed even smaller towns and several forbidden locations.

Most of these forbidden locations were Law Comprehension Areas that belonged to several Sects, but some of them were also something entirely different.

Gravis focused on one of these areas, and several pieces of information got transmitted into his mind. Apparently, the map even has an introduction for every location on it. Something like this was very valuable.

"Primordial Life Valley: It is said that this valley has a wide variety of lifeforms from the lower and middle worlds. The survival rate for people below the Immortal Emperor Realm is below 10%. The valley is currently being owned by the Elemental Life Sect, which has a close partnership with the Life Sect."

Gravis scratched his chin as he read that. Actual danger zones? Gravis had not come across something like this previously. All the worlds he had been to had had all their locations mapped out. There wasn’t something as mysterious and dangerous as this.

Gravis started feeling excited when he thought about a mysterious land with lots of danger. So many things were always clear to him, and such danger zones were entirely new to him.

’There are probably also a ton of unknown plants in there. If someone manages to get some specimens out of there, other Sects can maybe cultivate these specimens. Although, there is also a possibility that there are specimens that can’t be cultivated outside this environment.’

’It’s a wonder that something like this can exist,’ Gravis thought as he scratched his chin in thought. ’Shouldn’t the most powerful Cultivators of this world already have the power to enter all these areas? How can something like this still be unmapped?’

’Though, it’s also possible that these danger zones remain unmapped on purpose. Maybe the powerful Sects want to leave such areas for their disciples to temper themselves with.’

Gravis looked at another forbidden area.

"Shrine of Powerlessness: Anyone that enters the shrine will be transported to a mortal world without any Cultivation. The Cultivator’s power will also vanish. Most of the Cultivators that enter never return. The chances to survive with a stronger Cultivation is higher, but not by much. Immortal Kings and Immortal Emperors have a similar survival rate, which is at around 5%."

’That truly sounds magical,’ Gravis thought. ’A shrine that saps someone of their Cultivation? Creating something like this is impossible without the Major Law of Life and an incredible Cultivation.’

’Could this be Arc’s doing?’ Gravis thought. ’He knows the Major Law of the True World, and he is probably the only person that can create something with such power.’

Suddenly, Gravis’ eyes shone. ’These could be Heaven’s Trials catered to different Laws,’ Gravis thought. ’They kill a lot of less talented people and increase the power of the survivors. The fact that Realm isn’t that relevant to survival also shows that surviving this danger zone doesn’t have much to do with power. It has probably something to do with comprehending a Law. Basically, it tests the comprehension ability of Cultivators.’

Gravis looked over the map for another minute and saw several more of these locations. ’Are these all Heaven’s Trials?’ Gravis thought. ’If so, there’s a terrifying amount of Heaven’s Trials in this world. However, this is the most powerful higher world, which also means that the filtering of true geniuses must also be severe.’

Gravis’ eyes narrowed. ’If so, I must avoid them at all cost.’

Why?

’These Heaven’s Trials can only be effective if there is enough incentive to pull a ton of Cultivators in. This means that one can either only find wealth or a rare Law that doesn’t have any normal Law Comprehension Areas.’

’I wouldn’t have a problem with a Law Comprehension Area that gives out wealth as a reward, but the Law Heaven’s Trials are dangerous. I don’t have an issue with the Laws of Perceived Reality, Dead World, or Life, but if I run into one that requires me to learn an Emotional Law, I can basically already commit suicide. Comprehending the Emotional Laws is nearly impossible for me right now, due to the issue with my lightning.’

’I can tell the rewards for some of these areas, but it is still far too vague to be sure. The Shrine of Powerlessness could teach one the Law of Humility. After all, when one was bereft of all power, one must accept to be weak.’

’However, it could also be for the Law of Empathy. Seeing one’s loved ones die to disease and old age while oneself also slowly closes in on death could teach someone Empathy.’

’It’s too difficult to see the rewards for these areas. On top of that, I can’t even go there. There are probably Immortal Emperors keeping watch over these areas, and there would also be Beast Crystals. As soon as I go to one of them, I will be killed.’

"How much did you pay for this map?" Gravis asked Siral.

"13 million Immortal Stones," Siral said.

Gravis nodded. "Give me the remaining stones."

Siral handed the remaining stones over to Gravis and continued bowing in front of him.

Gravis shot another glance at the map and found a good location. Gravis transmitted an image into Siral’s mind. "We’ll go there, and we’ll stay there until your tribulation arrives," he said.

"Yes, Master," Siral said.

"Go take the lead," Gravis said.

Siral bowed once again and teleported away as Gravis followed him. Gravis had chosen a location at the northeastern corner of the Nine Elements Sect’s territory. It wasn’t at the border but relatively close to it. No cities, towns, or powerful Sects were close to this location. This location was about as remote as it got.

Siral and Gravis traveled for nearly a month, and Gravis was reminded again of how humongous this world was. The two of them were teleporting like crazy, and it still took them a month of uninterrupted travel to get there.

’Father said that the highest world is about as big as all the other worlds combined. There must be over a thousand higher worlds, and the others should only be marginally smaller.’

’The size of the highest world is truly beyond comprehension.’

’How long would it even take me to go from one powerful Sect to the other with my current speed in the highest world?’

’Centuries? Millennia?’

Gravis already had difficulties imagining the size of this world, and he was trying to comprehend the size of the highest world. Obviously, this was impossible for the current him.

After Siral and Gravis arrived, Gravis told Siral that he should remain a couple thousand kilometers away from him. Gravis wanted his peace while he was comprehending the Major Law of Magma.

Siral left, and Gravis remained alone on a mountain.

The only thing that Gravis could see was nature and an abundance of mortal villages and cities.

Nearly no powerful Cultivators came here, which meant that this was a paradise for mortals.

Maybe not even one Cultivator would pass here every thousand years, and then they wouldn’t even fight.

A thousand years was an insanely long time for mortals. Empires and Kingdoms rose and fell in a millennium.

Immortals and maybe even Cultivators were probably only the stuff of legends. No one in this area had probably ever met a powerful Cultivator.

This was a mortal paradise inside a world governed by Immortals.

Cultivators were so elusive for these mortals that believing in them would be akin to a religion. After all, there was no evidence of their existence.

No one had ever seen an Immortal.

There were no Immortal materials or anything.

Cultivation didn’t exist.

As Gravis thought about these lands, he took out his Law Comprehension Fruits and concentrated on them.

This mortal life had nothing to do with him.

It was time to check out the effectiveness of these fruits.

Chapter 866 - 866 – Power Of The Life Fruit

Gravis readied his mindset for a couple of hours. For now, he had to forget everything that wasn’t related to his Laws. This time, he only had a limited amount of time to comprehend a Law, and he had to make the best use of it.

After Gravis readied his mindset, he swallowed the fruit in one bite. The fruit was bigger than a human’s head, but Gravis didn’t have any issues in swallowing the fruit in one bite due to obvious reasons.

As the fruit entered Gravis’ stomach, he felt boundless Life Energy coursing throughout his body. This was the Life Fruit of an Immortal Emperor, and the Life Energy it put out was incredibly powerful. Gravis even felt like his body was about to explode with power, but that obviously wasn’t the case. This was only the feeling one felt when one became incredibly energetic.

Gravis looked at his body, and it even felt like it was growing more powerful. ’Is that even possible?’ Gravis thought. ’A beast body is supposed to be the most powerful body, but it still feels like it is growing more powerful.’

’Stop thinking about your body! I got no time to check my body right now. I need to focus on the Law.’

Gravis looked at the Life Fruit in his stomach, but it had already vanished.

The digestive properties of a beast were terrifying. Anything that entered their stomach would vanish almost immediately.

However, even though the Life Fruit had vanished, the space in Gravis’ stomach had changed.

A swirl of brown and red Energy had been created inside his stomach. These were the Elements of Inferno and Graphite. Gravis knew both of these Elements already.

BRRR!

When the two different Energy streams crossed, an orange stream of Energy was created.

This was the Magma Element.

However, it wasn’t destructive in any way.

Yes, this was the Magma Element, but it wasn’t truly in its destructive form. This was the form that the Magma Element held before it actually received its destructive properties.

This meant that this basically showed the Composition of the Magma Element. The Composition was given physical form, which seemed impossible at first glance.

’I see,’ Gravis thought with a gleam in his eyes. ’There is no pure Energy inside my stomach, which means that there is no pure Energy that the Magma Element can fuse with. Without pure Energy, the Magma Element can’t become volatile or unleash its destructive potential. It’s like a fire without its fuel.’

Seconds after the orange stream of Energy had appeared, it split up again. Now, there was only a stream of red and brown Energy remaining.

However, Gravis noticed that a tiny bit of the essence had vanished, but it was minuscule for now.

BRRR!

Another stream of orange Energy appeared as the streams crossed again, and Gravis stopped thinking about anything else.

He had to fully concentrate on the Law now.

Gravis quickly lost himself in comprehension as he watched the orange stream being created and destroyed. It was so magical.

This was very different from looking at a Law Comprehension Area. A Law Comprehension Area used pure Energy to create a destructive force. A Law Comprehension Area showed the end product of what one was trying to comprehend.

However, this Life Fruit showed the creation and decomposition of the Law. Instead of showing only the result, it was showing every single step along the way.

Obviously, something like this was hundreds of times better than just looking at the finished product while trying to decipher the way to achieve that end product.

As Gravis watched the creation of the Major Law of Magma, he got reminded of something else.

It was like the Magma was telling Gravis all of its secrets out of its own volition.

Wasn’t this just like when Gravis comprehended the Lightning Laws?

However, how was something like this possible? After all, Gravis’ affinity towards the Inferno Element was slightly above-average, and his affinity towards the Graphite Element was horrendous.

With such a horrible affinity, how could it feel to him just like comprehending lightning?

’But it’s not entirely the same,’ Gravis thought. ’It feels exactly like the time when I comprehended the level four Battle Laws for Lightning, but it doesn’t feel like the time whenever I comprehend the Composition of a new form of lightning.’

’It took me about five years to learn a level four Battle Law for Lightning, but I can comprehend new forms of lightning in a second. This is nowhere near as crazy as when I comprehend a new form of lightning. I guess even the Life Fruits have their limits.’

’However, this is far more than enough. If this were a level four Law, I wouldn’t even need five years to comprehend it with such a clear display. Of course, this is a level five Law, and it will probably take much longer to comprehend it.’

’Additionally, I have never comprehended a level five Law before. I don’t know how complex level five Laws are yet, but I’m sure that I should be able to comprehend the Law with enough time.’

’One fruit gives me ten years of this display, and if I keep thinking about what I have seen in these ten years for another 50 years, it should be comparable to looking at the fruit for about 15 years.’

’So, if I include the 100 years of thinking about the Law with the 20 years that I get from two fruits, it should come to about 30 years of comprehension with a Life Fruit.’

’Tempering increases my comprehension speed to a terrifying degree, and if I have also ingested this fruit while fighting my opponent, I should be able to easily gain another 20 years of comprehension in just a short fight.’

’That blonde guy said that I should be able to comprehend the Law during my fight, which means that he thinks that I probably need around 50-years-worth of Fruit Comprehension with some tempering to understand the Law.’

’I’ve doubted other people’s evaluation about my Law Comprehension time incorrectly in the past, but they have nearly always been right on the money. The clerks from the Smart Cultivator have been pretty close with their guesses when I comprehended the level three Law Elements.’

’The blonde guy is probably a Peak Immortal Emperor, and I should trust his evaluation.’

’This probably means that a level five Law should be around ten times as hard to understand as a level four Law. It took me five years to comprehend a level four Lightning Battle Law, and this should be just as fast in relation. I would need about 50 years for this Law, which means that level five Laws take ten times as long.’

’Sure enough, everything takes longer and longer the more powerful I become.’

After thinking these thoughts, Gravis concentrated on the Magma Element again.

He lost himself as quickly as never before as he only watched the streams of Energy. It was like he had already stopped existing, and his entire reason for being alive was to comprehend this Law.

This Law took up all of Gravis’ mind and Spirit, and he forgot who he was and where he was.

Right now, only Gravis and the Law existed.

There was nothing else.

"Ah!" Gravis suddenly shouted like he had been shocked awake. All his memories immediately returned, and it was like he had just eaten the fruit.

Gravis looked at his stomach and realized that the streams of Energy were gone.

’Already!?’ Gravis thought in shock.

’That was never ten years just now!’

"How much time has passed, Siral?" Gravis asked.

"A bit less than ten years," Siral answered.

Gravis took a deep breath. ’Those were actually ten years.’

Gravis looked at the horizon with a forlorn expression. Right now, it was snowing on the mountain, and the landscape beneath the mountain was covered in a white blanket. Mortals were toiling away as they tried to get the last scraps of food out of the earth. Several hunters went through the forests as they tried to scavenge for ferocious beasts.

Demonic Beasts and more powerful didn’t exist in the human territory, but ferocious beasts were basically just more powerful animals.

However, Gravis ignored the lands beneath him. Instead, he was only thinking about time.

’Will I ever get used to this fast passage of time? I wasn’t even in the lower world for a decade, but I just blinked, and basically ten years have passed.’

Gravis sighed and shook his head slightly.

’I should get back to thinking about what I have seen in the last ten years.’

Gravis closed his eyes and thought about the streams of Energy he had seen in his stomach. The movement of the streams of Energy appeared natural to Gravis, and he felt like he knew what they would do, but he didn’t know the specifics yet. He didn’t know why they did what they did.

Gravis’ mind wandered again as he simulated the same streams of Energy again.

In his mind, the streams of Energy basically played with each other.

The streams of Energy were dancing in his mind as they fused and split apart again.

It was a mesmerizing display that took Gravis in, and he felt like-

"Greetings."

Gravis’ eyes shot open violently as he felt a voice coming from right in front of him.

In front of him stood a young man with black hair and brown clothes.

Gravis’ eyes narrowed as he realized that he couldn’t feel the power of this young man.

Chapter 867 - 867 – Mortal Wish

Gravis had practically been startled out of his Cultivation. After all, even while comprehending Laws, all his powers were active. His Laws of Danger and Safety were active, and his Spirit would also pick up if anyone came close to him.

Because of that, Gravis had been startled. This person in front of him had practically appeared out of nowhere.

Gravis couldn’t feel the power of the person in front of him, so he decided to investigate the young man closely with his Spirit.

Mortal.

Gravis lifted an eyebrow when he noticed that this was a mortal. He had nearly no Energy, nearly no Life Energy, no Will-Aura, and his body was weak. Gravis could also feel the Spirit of this man, but it was so weak that it couldn’t even interact with anything. This meant that his Spirit hadn’t been formed yet.

This was a true mortal. Not even a single part of his body had been tempered.

Now that Gravis calmed down, he also noticed the disheveled appearance of the man. His skin was an unhealthy red, and he breathed quickly. Several parts of his body were injured, and he even had a broken rib. Additionally, parts of his body had started to freeze.

Where was Gravis right now?

Gravis was on top of a mountain that was nearly ten kilometers tall. For Cultivators, climbing such a mountain wasn’t hard, but for a mortal, it was nearly impossible. The air up here was extremely thin, and the temperatures were far below freezing.

Judging by the mortal’s appearance, he wouldn’t survive the climb down. He would soon enter the last stages before hypothermia.

Seeing that Gravis didn’t respond to his greeting, the young man became more nervous. He had come here with a goal in mind, and he had planned thousands of times on how he should plead his case.

However, as soon as the God in front of him opened his eyes, all the young man’s plans vanished. The cold seemingly stopped existing, and his body stopped aching. It was like he was no longer in the real world and was pulled inside the world of this God.

This was a God!

A being of legend!

He was standing in front of something that shouldn’t exist in this world!

The mortal’s body started to shake, but not because of the cold. His body shook because of his emotions.

Fear, reverence, happiness, nervousness, hope.

Plomp!

The mortal fell onto his knees and nearly rammed his head into the cold mountain-stone. His knees and arms started bleeding heavily due to the impact.

"Please!" the mortal shouted with all his power, his voice sounding incredibly hoarse. "Take revenge for my family!"

Silence.

’Revenge, huh?’ Gravis thought.

More silence.

"Why should I?" Gravis asked evenly.

When the mortal heard Gravis’ voice, his body shuddered.

Gravis’ voice was so very normal. He didn’t sound any different from an average human.

"I will do anything!" the young man shouted without looking at Gravis. "No matter what, I will do anything!"

Silence.

"Is revenge so important to you?" Gravis asked.

"More important than anything!" the young man shouted as his head jerked up, now looking into Gravis’ eyes.

"And when your revenge is complete, what then?" Gravis asked.

"I’ll return ho-"

The young man suddenly stopped.

There was no more home.

The Qian family had killed everyone the young man knew!

"What then?" Gravis repeated.

The young man found it hard to answer. He hadn’t thought about an after.

After everyone he knew had been killed six months ago, his entire life had focused on revenge.

Revenge dominated his entire being.

His enemies must die!

However, when face to face with a God, he had to confront this question without an answer.

"Will you return to your previous life?" Gravis asked.

"Will you travel to distant lands and finish your smithing apprenticeship under a different master?" Gravis asked. It was not hard to read the memories of a mortal.

"Will you remain in your village?"

"What will you do?"

"I DON’T KNOW!" the young man suddenly shouted with tears in his eyes. Then, he looked down weakly. "I don’t know," he whispered.

"What were the last wishes of your family for you?" Gravis asked. "Did they wish for you to avenge them? Were they these kinds of people?"

"No, never!" the young man shouted with gritted teeth. However, his newfound conviction faltered just as quickly again. "They only want me to be happy."

"But how am I supposed to be happy when their butchers are still living under the same sky as me!?" he shouted as he punched the mountain below him.

Silence.

"Power can solve nearly all problems," Gravis said slowly. "It can help you attain freedom. It can help you to protect your close ones. It can help you take revenge. It can kill your enemies."

"However, power can’t help you become happy," Gravis said slowly, his words putting a heavy weight on the mortal.

More silence.

"I will not take revenge for you," Gravis said, throwing the mortal into a sea of despair.

"However, your conviction has moved me," Gravis said. "Your willingness to climb to your death because of the ones you love, even if it was for the wrong reason, is something I value highly."

"Therefore," Gravis said as hope reignited in the mortal’s eyes, "I will help your family to fulfill their dying wish for you."

Bing!

Gravis’ finger pointed forward, and the man lost consciousness.

Gravis looked at the young man as he scratched his chin. ’A mortal that has the tenacity to climb such a huge mountain for his loved ones. He probably saw my silhouette on a cloudless day, but from such a distance, he couldn’t even be sure if I actually existed. I could have just as well been a cloud or a stone.’

’Even more, I could have also just been a guy. Lastly, I could have already moved away before he reached the peak.’

’This man’s feelings for his family are so deep that he threw everything that he owned away just to take revenge as quickly as possible.’

’This mortal has an impressive amount of willpower, conviction, and he isn’t an emotionless machine.’

’Very well. Let me help you!’

Gravis put his finger on the mortal’s head, and it shone with white light.

The mortal’s body seized for about ten seconds due to the sheer amount of information that was shoved into his brain, but after that, everything stopped.

Gravis wouldn’t take revenge for the young man, but he gave the young man the tools to rise to power.

He taught the young man how to cultivate.

And was there anything better at teaching Cultivation than the preparation course for Research Assistants?

Gravis planted all his memories of the theoretical and practical lessons of the preparation course into the young man’s mind. Stuff like how the highest world worked or something like Elemental Synchronicity were taken out, as was information about Gravis’ family.

However, this young man would now be able to relive Gravis’ experiences in the preparation course.

People would look away from him and call him prince, which would elicit questions about Gravis’ background in the young man’s mind.

Gravis also planted several memories about his trip in the lowest world into the young man’s mind. Whenever the young man reached a new Realm, all planted memories before that Realm would be unlocked. Of course, no sensitive information was left in there.

Gravis simply did this to give the young man another Cultivator to compare himself to.

If he ever entered a trash Sect and received incorrect information, he could think about what Gravis had done and could see the truth.

The young man would realize: "No, this isn’t impossible. The person in my memory was able to do this."

Gravis grinned. It was a strange feeling to influence a mortal to such a degree. Gravis knew exactly that this action of his would reshape the entire life of this mortal.

Normally, Gravis didn’t care if something happened to mortals, but for once, he was looking at this person like he was an actual person.

"You have 100 years to reach the Unity Realm," Gravis spoke to the unconscious young man.

"A calamity is about to befall the surrounding thousands of kilometers, and everything will die. You must reach the Unity Realm before that and find me again."

Calamity? Well, a fight between Immortal Kings could be called a calamity for mortals.

"When you see your injured body, think how your family would feel if they saw you like this."

SHING!

Then, Gravis teleported the guy into a random cave in a forest. He only healed the life-threatening injuries but left the others. They would serve as a reminder.

The young man would survive and would wake up with a ton of new information in his head.

Meanwhile, Gravis looked at this Qian family, the enemy of this young man.

They were the leaders of a kingdom, which had recently won a war against another kingdom.

The main reason was that they had four generals with tempered muscles.

However, the true danger was the royal teacher.

He was at the first level of Energy Gathering.

’The hero has received his blessing, and the antagonist is set,’ Gravis thought with a smile. ’Will the hero triumph over the antagonist, or will he die along the way?’

Gravis chuckled a bit but quickly threw all of this out of his head.

His comprehension had been interrupted, but it wasn’t so bad. It took a couple days, at most, to return to his comprehension. A couple of days out of fifty years wasn’t anything.

SHING!

However, Gravis quickly changed mountains and went to a far higher one, nearly a thousand kilometers away.

It would be awkward if that guy appeared right in front of him again.

Without wasting another second, Gravis went back to comprehending the Magma Element.

Chapter 868 - 868 – Putting Arc's Power Into Perspective

Gravis spent the next couple of years looking at nothing but his memories of the different Energy streams.

"Master, 50 years are up," Siral suddenly transmitted to him.

Gravis always lost himself in comprehension, and centuries passed in the blink of an eye, which is why he had tasked Siral to keep track of time. Otherwise, Siral’s tribulation might arrive in merely a second.

Gravis opened his eyes and nodded.

After that, he took out the second fruit and consumed it. He didn’t even think about that one mortal guy. Right now, he had to focus on his Law of Magma.

Gravis felt his body grow more powerful again as he swallowed the fruit, but just as before, it was only an illusion. His body couldn’t become more powerful anymore without reaching the next level.

Gravis closed his eyes as he watched the streams again. After thinking about what he had seen the last time he had eaten the fruit, the streams of Energy only appeared even more familiar to him.

The streams of colored Energy danced in his stomach, and Gravis watched them as they seemingly played with each other. Laws were created and destroyed inside his stomach, and the display was just as magical as the first time Gravis had seen it.

And just like before, the display had vanished just as quickly. It felt so incredibly short to Gravis, but ten years had passed yet again.

Gravis sighed when he realized that his second fruit had been used up just like that. It didn’t feel like he had learned anything during that time, but that was mainly due to the fact that he was absorbing as much of the display as he could without thinking much about it.

Putting logic and patterns behind what he had seen was something that he would do over the next 50 years.

Just as before, Gravis informed Siral to awaken him after 50 years, and Gravis closed his eyes again.

In Gravis’ mind, the streams of Energy appeared again, and Gravis started to find patterns of their creation and decomposition. The display inside his mind became even more realistic after he had eaten the second fruit. The first display seemed blurry and confusing in comparison.

This one was far clearer, and Gravis could now extrapolate even more information out of this display.

"50 years are up, Master," Siral suddenly said, and Gravis opened his eyes.

His face still appeared a bit complex, but it wasn’t overly much so. ’I think I’m getting used to huge chunks of time being cut out from my life,’ Gravis thought. ’It’s still a bit weird, but I guess one can get used to absolutely everything.’

Gravis looked at the horizon with furrowed brows. ’120 years have passed ever since I have consumed the first fruit. This means that Siral’s tribulation will happen sometime in this century. There is always plus-minus a century when it concerns an Immortal’s tribulation. After all, Arc has to set all the gears in motion.’

’I wonder what opponent Arc has chosen for me.’

Currently, dawn was appearing on the horizon, but Gravis could empathize more with a sunset. Right now, Gravis was facing one of the most difficult fights in his life. This would be the first opponent that was five levels above him, and this opponent could only come from the Core Region.

The Core Region only had terrifying Cultivators. Gravis hadn’t fought one yet, but he had met many people from the Core Region in Arc’s clearing. According to what they said, it was not uncommon for Major Circulation Immortal Kings to know level five Laws.

In any other world, comprehending a level five Law would be the bottleneck to becoming an Immortal Emperor, but in this world, it was strange if someone didn’t know a level five Law when they reached the Peak Immortal King Realm.

In other worlds, there would be an army of Peak Immortal Kings that couldn’t breakthrough due to their lacking Law Comprehension, but in this world, the opposite was the case.

Immortal Kings generally started comprehending level five Laws somewhere in the Major Circulation Immortal King Realm. Immortal Kings that knew level five Laws in the Minor Circulation Immortal King Realm were rare geniuses, but it became normal in the Major Circulation.

Geniuses appeared in every single world, and this one was no exception.

However, the gigantic gulf between an average Cultivator and a genius in another world was reduced to a reachable distance in this world. The geniuses of this world might not be much better than the geniuses in other worlds, but there were far more of them here, and the average Cultivator was just as terrifying.

For the next couple of years, Gravis would prepare himself for the fight.

These might be the last years of his life, and he had to prepare himself fully.

Should he unleash his beast body?

He probably should. If he didn’t, this decision might result in his death.

He couldn’t hold back at all.

Gravis had to put all his cards on the table if he wanted to win, and he could keep nothing secret.

Undertaking this fight was an immense risk to Gravis, but there was no other choice.

Was Gravis ready for a fight against someone five levels above himself?

Probably not.

However, Gravis would never be ready.

Gravis could spend another 50,000 years comprehending Laws, but then what? Without tempering, he wouldn’t be able to comprehend any level five Law. His experience with level five Laws wasn’t good enough to understand these Laws without tempering.

This meant that Gravis wouldn’t know a level five Law anyway. Sure, he could comprehend a ton of level four Laws, but that would only marginally help. The Soft Pure Law would help him create a better armor, but armor was literally useless against such an opponent.

This was a Weapon Cultivator, the beings with the highest attacking power in existence. If Gravis were hit by an attack to his head, he would die regardless, and if he were hit someplace else, that place would be absolutely decimated beyond imagination with or without armor.

The Body Composition Law would also change nothing. Gravis couldn’t affect the body of someone so much more powerful than him.

The Element-Neutral level four Laws of Heat and Cold would also only supplement his Laws of Inferno’s Heat and Frost’s Cold. That also wouldn’t increase his Battle-Strength in any way.

What then? More level four Battle Laws?

Unnecessary.

Gravis already designed all his Elements to serve a specific purpose, and understanding more Laws would only help a tiny bit.

So, in short, comprehending more Laws right now would literally only serve to give Gravis more Law Comprehension experience and save time in the future when he comprehended the relevant level five Laws.

In order to increase his power, Gravis needed to comprehend a level five Law.

Could Gravis go and find another opponent to temper himself against?

Maybe, but it wouldn’t help that much.

Why?

Because Gravis was in an awkward place in regards to tempering.

Gravis could only temper himself against Spear Mountain because he was restricted from using his Spirit, Will-Aura, and Laws of Perceived Reality.

If Gravis fought a human four levels above himself, it would still count as tempering, but it wouldn’t be much. His Will-Aura wouldn’t increase a Realm, and such a fight definitely wouldn’t put Gravis under enough pressure to push him to comprehend the Law of Magma.

So, in order to comprehend a level five Law, only two paths were left.

Fight someone five levels above himself.

Increase his Cultivation until the power of the opponents grew so much that fighting four levels above himself would become truly dangerous again.

There was no third way.

If Gravis chose the second way, he might as well give up trying to fight Arc in the future.

Gravis had to fight Arc. There was no other way.

What was more dangerous, fighting Arc or fighting someone five levels above oneself?

The answer was obvious.

How powerful would Arc be even in his weakened form?

Arc was a Peak Immortal Emperor, just like everyone else. However, he would still know the Major Law of the Dead World and the Major Law of Life.

These were level seven Laws!

If someone comprehended a single level six Law, they could already leave this world.

There might even be beings that know three level six Laws in this world, but what was that compared to knowing two level seven Laws?

Some Immortal Emperors knew level six Laws, but definitely not all of them.

Some Immortal Kings knew level five Laws, but definitely not all of them.

So, if one put Arc’s power into the perspective of an Immortal King, it would be like Arc was an Immortal King that knew two level six Laws!

How ridiculous was that?

Could Arc fight five levels above himself in that case?

Pfft, easily!

Six levels? Probably.

Seven levels? Definitely not.

This meant that facing this opponent was absolutely nothing in front of facing Arc in the future.

So, if Gravis pulled back now, he would definitely die in the future.

He had to jump into the cold water!

Gravis prepared himself for the inevitable fight for the next couple of years as best as he could, and the years passed.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Suddenly, Gravis noticed some fighting in his Spirit Sense. Usually, he didn’t notice any sounds of weak beings fighting, but the shockwaves were actually quite powerful for this area.

Gravis looked over with his Spirit Sense and noticed that a young man was battling several old people.

All of these old people had different robes and different weapons. They obviously didn’t belong to the same power, but all of them were ganging up on the young man with black hair.

Even more, all four opponents were an entire level above the young man, but the young man was fighting all of them simultaneously.

The young man was in the Initial Nascent Nourishing Realm while his opponents were in the Early Nascent Nourishing Realm.

Gravis blinked a couple of times in surprise.

’Huh, isn’t that that one mortal?’

Chapter 869 - 869 – Yi Lu

Gravis looked at the fight with interest. The young man had an impressive Battle-Strength. All of these old people were probably the Sect Masters or Ancestors of different Sects. They also all had impressive Battle-Strengths, but he was still fighting all of them at the same time.

When Gravis saw that, he sighed.

’Time, huh?’ he thought. ’I just closed my eyes for a second, and a mortal has already become a powerful Nascent Nourishing Cultivator. In just the blink of an eye, a mere mortal has reached a power that would even make him respected in middle worlds.’

"Yi Lu, give up!" one of the old men shouted. "You have offended all our Sects! There is no future for you anymore! Why struggle?"

"You are the child of a demon, and you still dare to resist!?" another one shouted as he unleashed a wave of darkness. "You kill without hesitation! If someone like you still counts as a human, humanity is doomed!"

"Yi Lu! You have killed my son, your teacher! A teacher is like a father! How can someone like you still be a human!?" a third one shouted.

"Give up, Yi Lu! You have colluded with the Sin Sword Sect! You are not a good person, and you will pay for it today!" the fourth one shouted.

Yi Lu only laughed loudly as his body was bathed in blood. It was uncertain if that was his blood or the blood of his enemies, probably both.

"Why talk?" Yi Lu asked with a smirk. "You know in your heart what truly happened. Wasting words is meaningless now!"

’Man, that guy got around,’ Gravis thought, impressed. ’He offended quite some Sects.’

The fight became fierce, and Yi Lu received one injury after the next. It even went so far that one of the weapons completely stabbed through his torso.

However, when that happened, Yi Lu showed a bloodthirsty smirk.

"Got you!"

BZZZZ!

Destruction Lightning appeared in his palm, and he pointed it towards his attacker. His attacker immediately became white in the face and jumped away.

BOOOOM!

But then, Yi Lu pointed his palm at someone else, and this person exploded in an explosion of lightning. The other person hadn’t expected that Yi Lu would suddenly attack him.

Then, Destruction Lightning gathered on Yi Lu’s spear, and he shoved it forward with all his strength at another person.

SHING!

A bolt of lightning came out of his spear, which went through the forehead of another Sect Master.

The Sect Master died immediately.

Suddenly, Yi Lu retrieved a saber, which was already crackling with Destruction Lightning.

He had preloaded this saber with his attack.

Yi Lu slashed down, and Gravis smiled.

A Lightning Crescent came out of the saber, and the explosion destroyed the third Sect Master.

Now, only Yi Lu and one Sect Master were left.

"I’ve underestimated you, Yi Lu," the Sect Master said calmly. "But you have used up all your Energy. However, I still thank you for taking care of these three annoying bugs."

Yi Lu only smiled.

WHOOOM!

Suddenly, Energy started to gather on Yi Lu, and his Energy fully recovered. The Sect Master’s eyes widened in terror. "No! This is impossible!" he shouted. "You were out of Energy!"

Meanwhile, Gravis had to laugh.

’The Heaven’s Balance Cultivation Technique,’ Gravis thought with a nostalgic expression. He still remembered how Aion had given that technique to Gravis in the lower world. Sadly, this technique had become redundant ever since Gravis had received his beast body. After all, he could just eat his opponents now.

Yi Lu made short work of the last Sect Master. However, when he was done, he nearly lost consciousness. His body was severely injured. A Unity Realm Cultivator would already be at death’s door.

Yi Lu breathed deeply, but a peaceful smile appeared on his face.

"I did it," he said to himself. "The Calamity has been averted. Now, this area is safe."

’?’ Gravis thought. ’Calamity? Wait, is there some kind of misunderstanding?’

WHOOOOM!

Suddenly, an apocalyptic pressure appeared in front of Yi Lu. One of the emblems that one of the Sect Masters had dropped had broken on its own, which summoned another Cultivator.

A woman dressed in white appeared in front of Yi Lu, and she looked at the destruction around her.

Then, her eyes focused on Yi Lu.

"You have killed my son?" she asked with narrowed eyes.

Yi Lu couldn’t feel the power of this person. This woman was so far above his league that he couldn’t even defend himself.

However, Yi Lu only smiled sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "Lady, could you be a bit more specific? I’ve killed a lot of people."

His voice sounded honestly embarrassed.

The woman only narrowed her eyes at Yi Lu. "The Sect Master of the True Fire Sect," she said.

Yi Lu’s expression morphed into one of recognition. "Oh, right! That guy!" he shouted with a smile. "Yeah, I just killed him. Sorry about that."

The woman narrowed her eyes, and her aura became cold. "You know that you will die, but you still act this nonchalant?" she asked coldly.

Yi Lu laughed with embarrassment. "Well, you see, there is a small problem with that statement."

"And that is?" the woman asked.

"I kind of can’t die," Yi Lu said with embarrassment.

The woman’s brows furrowed in annoyance and confusion.

"It’s the truth!" Yi Lu shouted like he had been offended that she didn’t believe him. "Whenever someone far above my level wants to kill me, they get stopped by someone equally powerful."

The woman’s expression didn’t change.

"I’m serious!" Yi Lu shouted. "It happened five times by now! Whenever anyone that I can’t fight appears, someone else always kills them. It’s so weird, but I’ve learned to accept it."

"So, basically, I can only be killed by people with a similar Realm to mine," Yi Lu said with a complex expression. "I also don’t know why that happens."

Gravis was also surprised when he heard Yi Lu speak, and he quickly checked Yi Lu’s Karmic Luck.

’Normal,’ Gravis thought. ’His Karmic Luck is only a bit above average, nothing special.’

"To think that my son has been killed by such a lunatic," the woman said coldly. "May his shame die with you."

Then, she pointed at Yi Lu with her finger.

Gravis looked around with interest. Would someone come and save Yi Lu, just like he said?

Gravis didn’t see anyone around him that could save Yi Lu. This woman was a Peak Law Comprehension Realm Cultivator. She was close to becoming an Immortal, and no one around here could fight her.

Suddenly, Gravis’ expression sank. ’Oh, fuck,’ he thought.

’It’s me, isn’t it? This time, I’m supposed to save Yi Lu, is that it?’ Gravis thought bitterly.

Gravis looked as the woman unleashed her power, but everything happened so slowly in front of Gravis. His thinking speed couldn’t be compared to theirs.

’So, I’m obviously supposed to save him, but how and why?’ Gravis thought. ’This guy doesn’t have any Karmic Luck, but it’s like he still has an abnormal amount of Karmic Luck.’

Suddenly, Gravis felt like a bolt of lightning struck him.

’I understand!’ he thought.

The woman unleashed her power, but before it could touch Yi Lu, the woman disintegrated into dust.

BANG!

All her belongings exploded out of her destroyed Spirit Space as Gravis appeared in front of her.

Yi Lu saw Gravis, and it was like he was struck by lightning.

Tears gathered in his eyes as his jaw quivered.

This was his teacher!

This was the person that gave him a future!

This was the person that went through one tragedy after the other in the lower world.

This was the person that Yi Lu had always chased after.

This was Gravis!

"Siral," Gravis suddenly said.

"Yes, Master," a person said that quickly appeared out of nowhere.

"Protect Yi Lu for the next hour. Tempering Order: You are not allowed to help me in the next fight," Gravis said.

Siral’s body shook as the Life Ring implanted the special command into his being. However, Siral’s body didn’t shake because of the Life Ring, but because he had realized what was happening.

"Yes, Master," Siral said. Then, his body shook as he struggled. "And, thank you for everything."

"Wait, wh-"Yi Lu wanted to say, but he was quickly whisked away by Siral.

Meanwhile, Gravis looked at an emblem. It had left the woman’s Spirit Space when she died, and it was beginning to shake violently.

’Your machinations are truly terrifying, Arc,’ Gravis thought. ’You protected Yi Lu all this time so that he would come into mortal danger just in front of me. Then, after I killed the woman, her emblem would activate and summon someone far more terrifying.’

The emblem broke, and an impossibly powerful pressure assaulted the surroundings.

All the mortals on the ground were immediately destroyed as the Will-Aura flattened hundreds of kilometers of land.

Someone had arrived, and this someone was in the Mid Major Circulation Immortal King Realm.

Gravis’ opponent was here.

Chapter 870 - 870 – Eran

A man appeared.

In front of Gravis flew a middle-aged man with silver hair. His robes were black and white, and on his back, he carried a peculiar sword. It was over a meter long and slightly curved. It was thin, and it only had one edge. The last time Gravis saw a sword like this was in the lower world when he fought someone from the Fire Guild.

The sword radiated an incredible power of cutting, even more powerful than the cutting power of Storm. For a second, Gravis was confused. What could cut even better than the Element of Storm?

However, the more Gravis felt the aura of the sword, the more he felt familiarity.

’Space?’ Gravis thought with confusion. ’Space can cut with such ferocity?’

The Spirit Sense of the new arrival extended, and he noticed Gravis and Siral. His eyes immediately fell on Siral, and he ignored Gravis.

"He is not your opponent," Gravis said.

The man looked at Gravis.

WHOOOOOM!

He activated his Will-Aura, which was on the level of a Peak Immortal King. His Will-Aura was just as powerful as Gravis’ Will-Aura, but there were five levels between them.

By all intents and purposes, Gravis should be unable to move right now. The difference in Will-Aura was so much that Gravis would be suppressed by 100%.

WHOOOM!

Gravis’ Avatar appeared, and it shone as brightly as never before.

Gravis could still move, but his eyes narrowed. ’My Avatar is at its limit,’ he thought. ’This has never happened before.’

Gravis’ Avatar was shaking, and it looked like it was close to breaking. It was like it was using 100% of its full power to resist the suppression of the enemy’s Will-Aura.

’Generally speaking, the power of an Immortal King is associated with level five Laws. My Law of Freedom is a level four Law, but since it is also my Avatar, it has the power of a level five Law. The enemy’s Will-Aura is at the peak of the Immortal King Realm, which means that its strength should also be at the peak of a level five Law.’

’This means that if my opponent had a Will-Aura at the level of an Immortal Emperor, I would be suppressed by some degree. Sure enough, if my Avatar of Freedom could protect me against every suppressive power, no matter how powerful, there wouldn’t be different levels of Freedom.’

The man looked at Gravis’ Avatar with intensity. He had never seen such an Avatar, and he could not tell what kind of Law this was.

Gravis moved closer a little bit to demonstrate that he could still move, but there were still kilometers between them. The eyes of the man slightly widened in surprise. He had expected that Gravis wouldn’t be able to move.

"As I’ve said, I’m your opponent," Gravis said.

The man studied Gravis more closely. "You were the one that killed my granddaughter?" he asked.

"Yes," Gravis directly said.

Gravis could see hatred in the man’s eyes when he heard that Gravis confirmed it.

"Are you speaking the truth, or are you simply there to take the fall for your master?" the man said as he gazed at Siral.

"I am the master, and he is the servant," Gravis said.

"And you think I would believe something like that?" the man said coldly.

Then, Gravis did the first thing he had planned.

He took out his Life Ring and showed it to the man.

Why!?

If people knew that he had a Life Ring, they would hunt him down!

Even Peak Sects would hunt him down!

"This is a Slave Ring," Gravis said, and the man narrowed his eyes.

For a moment, Gravis had been nervous, but that had vanished when he saw the glint of greed in the man’s eyes.

The more valuable Gravis was, the more the man would want to keep Gravis’ identity a secret. If the man could get the Life Ring and offer it to the Life Sect, he would earn an insane amount of wealth.

If this were only a matter of enmity and revenge, the man might call someone to help him in this fight if he realized that he might die. However, if he did that now, he would need to share the Life Ring with that other person as well. Additionally, the other person could inform the Life Sect of the Life Ring and act like the man didn’t intend to hand it over. At that point, the man would not only not get his reward, but he would also die.

Gravis revealed his Life Ring for precisely this reason.

Gravis had to be certain that no third party would get involved.

The streams of red and brown Energy were already fusing in Gravis’ stomach. When Gravis had realized Arc’s plan, he had eaten the third fruit. He couldn’t show the fruit to the guy, or he might realize what kind of Law Gravis was trying to comprehend.

"Interesting," the man said as he fully turned towards Gravis. "You showed this ring on purpose, hoping that I won’t call someone else to interfere."

Gravis wasn’t perturbed by these words. This was an open scheme, which meant that it was irrelevant if the opponent knew the goal of the scheme or not. It would work either way.

"This means you are confident," the man said. "Tell me, what makes you so confident? Is it your servant?"

"No, my servant won’t involve himself," Gravis said.

"So, you’re saying that you believe you have the power to contend with me?" the man asked.

"I do," Gravis said, and the man’s eyes narrowed. "I have killed several beings four levels above me already, and you are the first opponent that’s five levels above me. I have waited for you for a long time."

"You expected my arrival?" the man asked with narrowed eyes.

"You are supposed to be my servant’s tribulation," Gravis said. "However, I will be overtaking his tribulation for today since I need to push myself to my absolute limits."

The man inspected Gravis closely, but he didn’t see any kind of nervousness on Gravis. Someone like Gravis shouldn’t be able to lie to him, which meant that Gravis was either a masterful liar that knew the Law of Lies, or he was telling the truth.

"Commendable," the man said. "I respect someone with a powerful Battle-Strength. If you had not killed my granddaughter, we could have been friends. Alas, you won’t see tomorrow."

The man slowly took out his sword, and it started to warp and change. Space was bending around it.

"You don’t act like someone from the Primordial Force Sect," Gravis said. "Are you per-chance from the Purist Sect?"

The man raised an eyebrow. "Quite a clever boy. Yes, I’m from the Purist Sect," the man said. "I know the Law of Primordial Force, but the Primordial Force Sect is not to my liking."

Gravis also took out his saber. He had sent Siral to buy a ton of extremely powerful materials and created a lot of weapons. It was important to be as prepared as possible.

When the man saw Gravis’ saber, he scoffed, but then he realized something, and his eyes narrowed. "Your weapon has only been forged with the Hard Pure Law, but it has several attributes that do not conform to the Law. Did this weapon come from an Ironworker?" the man asked.

Gravis hadn’t heard about Ironworkers before, but he could tell what they did, based on context clues. Ironworkers were probably Forgers that knew several Battle Laws of the Core Element, which increased the power of a weapon. Forgers with a metal affinity were very rare, which made these weapons highly sought after.

"Just something I made myself," Gravis said.

Usually, the man would never believe that Gravis could be an Ironworker, but Gravis appeared very peculiar and unique in the man’s eyes.

"An unknown Avatar and an Ironworker. A Slave Ring and a Slave four levels above yourself. Maybe it’s not impossible that you are as powerful as you claim."

"Fine," the man said as his eyes became sharp. "I accept you as a powerful opponent, even though you are so many levels below me. Take it as a sign of respect from me."

"My name is Eran," the man said. "My Avatar is of the Law of Primordial Force, and I know the level five Law of Space Manipulation."

Gravis took a deep breath when he heard Eran’s introduction. ’Sure enough, he knows a level five Law. Right now, I don’t feel like I can win, but that is only considering my current power. If I can’t grow in this fight, I will die.’

"I am Gravis," Gravis said, "and I have far too many Laws to introduce, which is why I won’t introduce them."

The man wasn’t surprised. Someone who could fight four levels above oneself had to know an insane amount of powerful Laws.

The man could easily judge the battle style of his opponents with a single glance, but he couldn’t judge the battle style of Gravis. Gravis showed no peculiar aura for any kind of Law or fighting style.

Yet, that was not entirely accurate. It was more like Gravis was showing all of the signs for all kinds of battle styles at once.

The man immediately saw Gravis’ biggest power.

Variety.

Flexibility.

Adaptability.

Creativity.

However, instead of growing more respectful, the man felt disdain.

Gravis was the perfect antithesis to him.

"Jack of all trades, master of none," the man said. "In front of ultimate offense, all your powers are useless."

"Why don’t you try it?" Gravis asked with a smile as he readied himself.

"Hmph."

SHING!

And Gravis’ left arm was cut off.