Badge in Azure

Chapter 546: The Mountain Without End (Part 1)

Chapter 546: The Mountain Without End (Part 1)

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Saleen silently wished that Sika would act out in front of everyone. Assuming the strengths of both his and Lex’s teams were the same when they finally discovered the seeds of the divine tree, in order to justifiably split it equally, Sika’s acting out would have helped. If it was just based on the relationship between Lex and him, even if he only got half of the seeds, Lex’s subordinates would still feel that the arrangement was unjustified.

In this world, there would be no status without power. Regarding the interdimensional space, Lex did not clarify with her subordinates. It was inevitable that some of them would be unhappy that they were collaborating with Saleen.

Right now, Lex’s subordinates were still trusting and were easy to handle. In future, if Lex were to expand territories and recruit new manpower, things might not be the same.

Sika said to Saleen smugly, “Look, now I don’t have to climb the mountain like the rest of them.”

“Yes, but your… why did it become so small?” Saleen pointed at the monster bones and asked. The bones originally would be able to carry around four people, but now it could only carry Sika.

Sika knew what Saleen was asking and said, “This thing can only be used by me. If the others wish to come up, they will first have to be able to handle Mental Storm.”

Saleen had nothing to say to that. Aside from mages, normal warriors basically had no resistance against Mental Storm. Only black metal grand swordmasters and above could one maintain fighting abilities while under the effects of Mental Storm. Those were only applicable if Mental Storm was an area attack though. It could also become a single point of attack, like what Sika used to attack Ismail.

In comparison, a single point of attack was also its weakness and could enhance one’s survivability against Sika’s Mental Storm. Mental Storm was not real magic, it did not have the ability to lock on and chase its target. Ismail was unlucky and was moving too slowly to be hit by Sika’s attack, allowing Saleen the chance to capture him.

Lex met with Saleen at an area and she felt envious as well when she saw Sika’s transport. Sika was the priestess of the Caucasus people and had secret lineages, so her abilities could not be learned. There was no point envying. After the monster bones had been completely refined, Sika would have the ability to fly and would no longer be just a normal warrior that could only depend on strength when fighting on land.

Saleen was pleased. Sika’s breakthrough was the biggest help to him. He had also helped to refine Sika’s boomerang again and it was now considered to be another magic equipment. Although the boomerang only had one mode of attack, its sharpness could not be compared to middle-grade magic.

Nailisi felt angsty. If she swallowed Ismail, she would also obtain a flying ability. Unfortunately, she did not have the time to digest now, she had to wait until they were back in Metatrin City. She would obtain the powers of Ismail and the supreme demon, no matter what.

The great power of the golden grand swordmaster lay in his ability to fly and his powerful attacks, as compared to mages.

Cuisi noticed the ugly look on Nailisi’s face and was considerate enough not to use his flying ability. He was instead climbing the mountain with his own feet like everyone else. If he flew towards the mountain, without question, he would have been badly beaten up by Nailisi after that. Although he was more powerful than Nailisi, he had signed a contract and he could not go against it. Besides, he saw the possibility of advancement from Nailisi.

Cuisi was of a different breed amongst demons, and it was unfortunate that he did not have Nailisi’s bloodline. Although his abilities were comparable to some supreme demons, he would never have the chance to improve in his lifetime. The ability of Luoluokaluo gave him a glimpse to the possibility of advancement. By that time, he might even have a chance to advance into a devil, which was even better than a supreme demon.

The other three demons were probably so compromising because they realized this as well. In the demon dimension, there was no room for Luoluokaluo to grow, and it was rare to find a mature body in ten-thousand years. Nailisi’s appearance was an incredible coincidence for the four of them.

There were no paths leading up the mountain. The swordmasters were wearing Spirit Snake armor so they were able to use their limbs to climb up the mountain effortlessly. Unlike the desert, this environment was much more suitable for the swordmasters to show their true strengths. The two teams worked together and were able to climb up the mountain twice as fast as when they traveled in the desert.

After climbing for eight hours with maximum effort, the temple on the mountain still looked far away. Within the Goddess’ dimension were systems made from stars that were filled with thick element, rendering the magic compass useless. Without the compass, Saleen was unable to calculate the real distance to the temple.

Saleen had seen the Goddess’ necklace before and was already impressed with the Goddess’ ability to manipulate the dimension. This mountain that seemed unreachable made him fully realize the difference in abilities between him and the Goddess of Myers. At his best, Saleen was only able to help Eleanor refine her arrow case. A normal dimension equipment was already beyond him. The arrow case was still a type of Elvish magic and was not something within Saleen’s knowledge.

Raphael, who had similarly created a dimension, did not have the ability to create his own rules. Within the dimension of the metallic column, the rules were no different from that of the outside world. The six elements’ space was not created by Raphael either. Some special materials were used and the rules were excited out of these materials and into existence.

In the Goddess’ dimension, everything was created by her.

Everyone found a suitable spot to rest and stopped. Lex and Saleen discussed, “If we keep moving upwards, I think it will take at least half a month to reach the top. What if…”

Saleen laughed bitterly and said, “I think we will not be able to reach it even within a month. If you plan to go ahead first, then only the both of us can go together. Why don’t we each bring along a person with flying abilities and go ahead first? There are no dangers here anyway.”

“Okay.” Saleen said what was already on Lex’s mind. There might be fighting involved when they entered the temple, but the mountain was so tall that the swordmasters would not be able to help much by entering the temple. In the event that they had to escape, there would be nowhere for them to run when they were trapped on such a high mountain. Only those with flying abilities would be able to escape easily.

As long as Saleen still had some mental strength left, he could easily use a flying spell of the wind element to help him leap down from the mountain. In comparison, the silver grand swordmasters would not be able to do this. They could only rely on the sword aura within their bodies to sustain a short period of flying. Eventually, it would not be enough and they would fall to their death or be caught up by enemies.

By observing the mythical beast’s behavior so far, he guessed that the temple was not too dangerous. If too many people tagged along, it would be difficult to split the goods when it came down to it.

When it was time to choose, Saleen chose Sika and Lex chose Bain.

Nailisi was unhappy, so Saleen pulled her to the side and said, “I have two tasks for you. The first is to monitor Lex’s men and make sure they do not act on their own, in the name of protection and safety. I still do not know what other things may appear in this dimension. Number two, one hour after I leave, I want you to ask Cuisi to follow me and wait for me outside the temple. He must not enter. Do you understand?”

Nailisi’s expression was unwilling, but she nodded. Saleen warned, “Entering the temple this time around is extremely important for all of us. You must not create any trouble. If I come back and find half of Lex’s men gone, I will take it that you ate them.”

Nailisi hung her head. Saleen rubbed her hair and said, “Wait until we are back, I will find a safe place for you to train in peace. I know you are about to attain a flying ability very soon. Don’t be like this.”

“Yes, Master.” Nailisi swallowed her unhappiness. It was a fact that she still could not fly now, so there was no point saying more.

Lex spent a few hours to set up camp on a flat terrain beside the mountain slope. The two barracks were made of metal and were positioned together in the shape of a horn. Saleen gave instructions to Nailisi time and again before finally departing with Lex, along with Sika and Bain.

Sika was having it the easiest. The power contained within her monster bones was even stronger than a grade-9 monster, so she was only borrowing its strength to fly and she only had to control the flying style. Lex and Saleen were both proper mages, so aside from the fact that they were carrying heavy equipment, they were still flying freely like sorcerers.

It was the first time that the assassin, Bain, displayed his flying ability. Although his grade was not yet on par with the golden grand swordmaster, his abilities were. Bain flew at a speed that was not too fast nor too slow and stayed close to Lex. On the other hand, Saleen was surrounded by fog and stayed close to Sika. In the blink of an eye, the four of them were traveling at a speed of more than one-hundred miles an hour.

The Wind Travel spell was a type of grade-6 magic. One would be able to maintain it for about one to two hours each time it was cast. Lex’s equipment would be able to help her sustain this magic to its limit, so every time it was cast, Lex would be able to use it for at least two and a half hours. As a grade-6 mage, she could use twelve types of grade-6 magic.

Lex did not wish to use any kind of methods to extend her flying time. Below them was not a big ocean where they would not be in any danger even if they were to fall. After flying for around ten hours, Lex and Saleen stopped.

Just how high was this mountain? Flying for ten hours was equivalent to more than one-thousand miles. In the human world, no mountain this tall should exist because they would be crushed by their own weight if it was too tall. Besides, air was limited in any dimension, so the higher one went, the thinner the air. After one-hundred miles, it was unlikely that anyone would still be able to breathe.

Lex and Saleen had already flown one-thousand miles vertically. They would have to be fools if they had not realized by now that there was something strange about this mountain.

“What should we do?” Saleen was also at his wit’s end. The rules in this dimension were created by the Goddess, so there was no way anyone could change it. If he had the ability to change the rules, then he would already have no use for the seeds of the divine trees.

Lex tried to recall any information related to the Goddess of Myers from her memory, but to no avail. No one had ever described this dimension.

“Could it be the Mountain Without End?” Saleen did not search for any information regarding the Goddess, instead he found a possibility based on another dimensions.

According to legend, the Mountain Without End was the highest mountain in the giant dimension and was a place that joined land to sky and where the strongest clan of the giants lived. In the eyes of mages, beyond the skies were stars that had no limits nor boundaries. In fairy tales and in some dimensions, the sky was like a blanket with an end to it.

The Mountain Without End was one-hundred and eight-thousand miles tall.

It was already tiring enough to fly for ten hours continuously. If they maintained this speed, they would need another ten days to reach the mountain top. If the swordmasters had followed, they would need at least a year before they could reach the top.