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Chapter 199: Earthen Unirabbit?
🕑 Added 2023-05-24 17:36:00 +0000 UTC“Hello, excuse me,” a voice came from the mist behind the cultivators, making everyone jump. Magic was held at the ready. Weapons were drawn.
Out of the mist walked three people. A middle-aged man with rackety clothes and a wide smile, a young, Asian man with two black daggers on his belt, and a djinn woman with twin ponytails and a large mallet.
“Sage?” Jack said.
“Do you know these people?” Lady Minerva asked, not letting up her readiness. The sparrow from before was hovering over her shoulder, ready to attack. “If not, they could be illusions or transformed monsters.”
“I know them, yes. I met them in Space Ring. Everyone, these people are the Sage, Dorman, and Poppy.”
“Pleased to make your acquaintance,” the Sage spoke again, smiling broadly. “The Lords, followers, and treasure hunters, I presume.”
Slowly, everyone let up. Lady Minerva unsummoned her sparrow, but not before Jack could scan it.
Diamond-Winged Sparrow, Level 124 (Elite)
A little bird with the ability to move at supersonic speeds without breaking the sound barrier. Its wings are tipped with diamonds, and its tenacity is superb, giving it great attacking power on top of its speed.
If all of Lady Minerva’s beasts shared the sparrow’s strength, each could defeat Jack by itself, or at least pose a great threat. And she had revealed five already.
It was a sobering thought.
“The pleasure is all ours,” Lady Minerva replied. “How did you find us in the mist?”
“I dabble in divination myself, honored Lady Minerva. I saw the best path forward and followed it, hoping to run into you. If you don’t mind, I could use my paltry skills to assist your current guide, as compensation for joining this Assault late.”
“Wait,” Longsword said from the side. “This doesn’t check out. How did you get past the animal tile tunnel? The cave trap?”
“Ah, the tunnel was simple. You left footprints on the correct tiles. As for the cave trap… I’m afraid we didn’t run into anything like that.”
Everyone looked at their feet. The ground of Garden Ring wasn’t sterilized; it was a grassland. Of course they left footprints. Plus, Jack himself remained barefoot. Nobody had offered him shoes that could withstand his explosive strength.
Wait. If they didn’t go to the cave trap… Jack resisted the urge to smirk. Paltry skills my ass. The Sage is better than our guide.
In all honesty, the Sage felt unfathomable. From the very first moment they met, the Sage seemed to have everything under his absolute control, even when D-Grades and C-Grades were involved. If he couldn’t guide them perfectly through Trial Garden, Jack would be a bit disappointed.
Many eyes turned to the merfolk guide, sharing the same suspicion that Jack had. In response, the merfolk’s eyes tightened. “Of course. Any help would be great,” he replied simply. “With you confirming my calculations, I will be able to guide everyone safely through the mist.”
After all, he was here as the guide. He couldn’t just let go of his position—especially after it had been shaken by the cave trap.
“Of course, of course. I would be happy to lend a hand as needed,” the Sage replied, showing no intention to fight for the position of head guide. That pacified the merfolk. A few quick introductions later, the Sage’s group joined them, and everyone advanced together.
“Where are your friends?” Dorman asked, walking next to Jack.
“They went to other gardens. I’m the only one here.”
“I see. That was probably the right call.”
“Yeah.”
Dorman was now Level 117. Since the last time Jack saw him, he had advanced by ten whole levels—all of them in Labyrinth Ring.
Jack had no clue where Dorman’s current strength lay. He remembered how they had sparred to a tie during the Integration Tournament. Afterward, Jack had broken through first and defeated Rufus Emberheart, but each had gone their own ways since then. Now, Dorman was higher-leveled.
Can I still beat him? Jack wondered.
“It’s a shame you weren’t in time to fight the Guardian,” he said. “The Ring Conqueror titles are no joke.”
“Oh, don’t worry about it. We have our ways.” Dorman seemed nonplussed.
Jack grinned. “You’ve taken to the Sage’s mysteriousness, haven’t you?”
“Hah. It comes with the territory. You know what I’m talking about.”
“Yeah…” On the plus side, Jack had company now. And old friends were the best kind of company. “How has life been treating you, Dorman? We didn’t really catch up in Space Ring.”
“I’ve been pretty well, to be honest. The Barren High didn’t spare any expense in training me. I met plenty of strong fighters—even my master was invited over to help me. You remember her, right? The cloud worm.”
“Hmm, kind of. The worm that moved like lightning and spoke telepathically?”
“That’s her. She taught me all sorts of stuff…and Trial Planet helped me a lot, too. I got a ton of levels.”
“Same here.”
“You seem a bit low, though…” Dorman gave Jack a side-glance. “You’re twenty levels behind. If you don’t work hard, you won’t be able to fight me.”
“I can still take you.”
“Oho. Wanna try?”
“You bet.”
Of course, fighting now would be a terrible idea for many reasons, but Jack kept it in mind. They had to spar again at the first opportunity. It could even give him the final spark of inspiration he needed to fuse his Dao Root of Power.
And what sort of fist would back down from a challenge?
The mists of Trial Garden were light and swirling, hiding all sorts of dangers. The next trap they ran into required someone to dive into an empty rabbit barren and pull a bunch of colored levers in the right order—or get buried in that barren forever. This time, a treasure hunter who was also a formation master was sent in, and he thankfully succeeded on the first try.
The hours passed. Their path got more and more jagged as the merfolk guide confidently led them forward, while the Sage was content to follow and nod in agreement.
At some point, however, the two guides slowed down. They looked from side to side, then at each other. The merfolk made to move to the left.
“Not that way,” the Sage said. “Something is intervening with your divination. That is the wrong path.”
The merfolk frowned, repeating his calculations. A moment later, he replied, “I don’t think so.”
“I am pretty certain.”
“How do you know?”
“I can divine it.”
The merfolk’s frown deepened. If the Sage could divine what he couldn’t, then there was a clear gap in ability between them—and the merfolk had fought hard to remain in the lead position.
“You are confused,” he finally said. “We have to go left here. Nothing could intervene with my divination without my knowledge—and, if something could, there is no way you would find it.”
“As you prefer,” the Sage replied calmly. “However, we should be careful. At the first sign of trouble, we stop and send a treasure hunter to investigate.”
Jack trusted the Sage. He was very glad not to be the next treasure hunter in line.
“Very well,” the merfolk replied. They veered left. Throughout that interaction, the Lords had been silent, watching the guides interact with each other.
Some minutes later, the mist thinned. Jack saw elated expressions on everyone’s faces. The thinning mist was apparently a sign they were approaching the garden’s core.
Suddenly, a voice spoke in his mind. “Greetings, cultivators.”
Everyone froze. “Did you…” someone began, only for someone else to finish, “Yes. We all heard it.”
“What is that?” Jack asked.
“I am Drevil Kastermonf, a familiar left here for the worthiest of formation masters. Advance and lay eyes on my form.”
The group looked at the guides. The Sage glanced at the merfolk, who shrugged. “Treasure hunter,” he said, “off you go.”
The stone golem valiantly walked into the mist. A moment later, his voice reached their ears. “It’s safe.”
Everyone walked up to him. The mist had thinned a lot here, revealing a ten-foot-wide circle. Runes and symbols made up its periphery, their meaning unknown but their forms mystical. A curtain of shimmering wind stretched over the circle, forming a transparent dome.
A creature stood inside the otherwise empty circle. It resembled a rabbit, except with one horn on its head and vivid green fur. Jack tried to scan it, only to come up with nothing. Whatever this circle was, it blocked the System’s inspection.
The moment Kareena laid eyes on the rabbit, however, she gasped.
“Do you know what that is?” Lady Priya asked her.
“I do,” she replied. “That’s an Earthen Unirabbit. One of the most sought-after spiritual companions for formation masters and Mental cultivators. They can grow up to the D-Grade. This must be a baby!”
“The silver-haired girl is correct,” the rabbit’s voice rang in everyone’s minds. It was cheerful and quick, coming in bursts of many words. It really did fit a rabbit. A formal-speaking rabbit. “I have been trapped here for the worthy…but approach with caution. Hear the rules of my trap: the one who releases me will become my master, either to command or sell me. If you make a mistake, however, hellfire will rise from the magic circle to burn you. Brave my cage at your own risk.”
Spiritual companions could bring their cultivator many benefits, from stat improvements to insights. But not every animal was fit to become a spiritual companion. Brock, for example, wasn’t, which is why Jack had never seen a tangible increase in his stats.
He was, however, an excellent bro.
Actual spiritual companions were very rare and very valuable. Even Jack could tell that the value of a D-Grade one was astronomical—especially when you could raise it from a baby.
A few cultivators, including Kareena, quickly approached the circle and began inspecting it. After all, the rabbit had made the rules clear. Whoever released it would become its master. It was a race.
Not everyone approached, however. Many people knew they couldn’t match Kareena or the others in formation solving speed, so they didn’t even bother. The merfolk’s face beamed with pride.
“See that, Sage?” he asked. “I discovered such a valuable prize. We would have missed it if we listened to your hesitation. You should not let fear cloud your judgment.”
“Indeed, an Earthen Unirabbit is a very valuable creature,” the Sage replied, nodding. “However, answer me this: are Earthen Unirabbits capable of telepathy?”
The merfolk adopted a confused look. “What are you talking about? Yes, they are. All immortals are.”
“But look at its horn. The horns of Earthen Unirabbits grow with their Dao understanding. This one only has five spirals—it clearly hasn’t reached the D-Grade yet. It shouldn’t be able to communicate telepathically, let alone manipulate the threads of fate to lead you here.”
The merfolk’s face was paling by the minute. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that everyone should get away from that thing. Now.”
As the Sage said that, many things happened at once. The rabbit jumped towards the formation’s edge, transforming into a humanoid with gray skin, bat wings, red horns, spikes on its spine, and long, sharp ears. Its clawed arm then enlarged as it swiped at the cultivators through the circle.
Echidna Devil, Level 124 (King)
A creature manifested from the Dao of Law. It is compelled to always keep its word, but it also gains extreme power against anyone who breaks their word to it. Therefore, it enjoys luring cultivators into craftily-worded contracts and deals that end up with it having the upper hand.
This particular Echidna Devil has lost most of its power due to the clauses of a past contract.
None of these cultivators were stupid. Hearing the Sage’s words, they had already jumped back. One of them, however, hesitated for just a moment too long. The devil’s claws moved impossibly fast, grabbing him from the back of the neck and pulling him face-first at the circle.
The cultivator rammed into the shimmering air like it was a physical wall. He gasped in pain. The devil screamed—its hand was steaming where it came into contact with the shimmering air.
“Stomp on the circle! Stomp on the circle and pour your Dao into it!” the devil roared desperately, its voice taking on a magical tone that brooked no disobedience. Jack felt a supernature urge to follow its instructions—which he quickly suppressed.
Apparently, the captured cultivator didn’t. His leg rose to stomp down. In the same instant, the tip of a long sword pierced into his neck from behind, ending his life instantly. The leg lost power and plopped softly on the ground, not disturbing the circle’s symbols, let alone pouring any Dao into it.
Longsword calmly retrieved his sword, having averted a disaster. The devil roared and withdrew its hand, letting the corpse tumble to the ground. It then cradled its hand in his chest, as it still steamed. It was badly burned.
The devil’s face, however, remained wicked, even as it warped in pain.
“Smart human,” it shouted in a rough voice, like its throat was parched. “Too smart. Suspiciously smart. Release me quickly, or I may reveal your secret to everyone. I promise to run away without harming any of you.”
