Intermission (1/1)

This changed everything.

Crimson- or well, more accurately, the clone of her was worried, extremely so.

She had found a being with the power of a Beast and the talent of a Cultivator. But how the hell had it wound up cultivating a Dao outside of Heaven's Path?

In her retelling of the origin of the System, she had held a bit back about those who could bend the System to their will. They were called Primordials.

Throughout the history of the multiverse, there were only ever 12 of them. Each was believed to be on the same level as the Emperor who had created the System.

Originally, there was only one way to power. However, each of these Primordials brought a Dao into the System's purview or Heavens Path, thus making it a 'safe' path.

All Dao came from the Dao of Origin, which then split into the Dao of Creation and the Dao of Oblivion.

The goblin- no, Trace, cultivated the Dao of Power, which wasn't in Heaven's Path.

The System picked and choosed which Daos it liked, and picking a path of power outside of those would mean making yourself an enemy of the System itself. That was why only 12 had ever manage to add new Daos to the System, in a sense.

While her Dao of the Fist was connected to both the Dao of Power and the Dao of Martial Arts, it was still in Heaven's Path.

Hopefully that goblin would be able to stand the Heavenly Tribulation at every breakthrough.

Still, such a intense bloodline...

...

This changed everything.

Arkaz sat in his office, his finger tapping against the desk repeatedly.

He was annoyed.

As the leader of the demonic incursion, he had a advantage over others coming into the incursion. He was limited to Peak F-Grade, thus making power restrictions by the Ruthless Heavens nonexistent.

What he didn't expect was for the king of this E-Grade forest to respond. The early E-Grade beast tore through all of the demonic beasts in its path, and even a scouting party Arkaz had sent.

So, finally, he had sent his peak F-Grade brother to go deal with the thing. But more importantly, he looked at his quest screen. A new quest had popped up.

King of the Forest (Unique, Limited): Claim the Pseudo D-Grade natural treasure, the Divine Cherry, when it ripens. Reward: Pseudo D-Grade Treasure, Divine Cherry. King title. Time until the fruit ripens: (98:32:12)

Arkaz looked at this notification with a frown. No doubt the beasts and powerhouses of the forest would all be vying for the [Divine Cherry]. Not only would it elect a new King of the Forest, but it would most likely give whoever consumed a race upgrade to E-Grade, along with any other slew of benefits.

It didn't help either that the Ruthless Heavens showed him the exact location of the [Tree of Divinity], where the fruit would appear.

It didn't matter. Arkaz knew he would have to be the one to get the cherry, and not that enigmatic King of the Forest...

...

Trace was grinning to himself as he looked at all of his knew equipment. All in all, it was quite the haul, and he even had gained loot that would last him well into E-Grade.

The Cosmos Sack was invaluable, as it would allow him to pull out items in the middle of a fight. The only downside was him having to touch it, but perhaps there were Storage Rings out there somewhere.

Trace had already decided how to spend his days, now. In the morning, he would hunt and gain a few levels. Then, when he came back, he'd work a bit more on his Dao Control before practicing his Body Tempering Manual.

However, he was interrupted from his musings with a notification.

[Struggle for Supremacy!]

A new quest. But suddenly, the image of a Cherry Tree was imprinted in his mind.

The tree had a curved body, with countless golden runes crisscrossing its bark. The branches drooped to form what almost seemed to be a dome with golden leaves.

But more importantly, there was a budding golden cherry on the tee. Every single one of Trace's cells screamed for him to eat that fruit.

Just as soon as he was shown the vision, it disappeared. When Trace returned to his body, only one though remained.

I need that fruit...

The System had also given him the exact location of the tree. Wasn't that just fortunate? But since it would be over 3 days until it ripened, then he would have to wait and get stronger before snatching the [Divine Cherry].

Trace rolled his shoulders as he looked toward the sky. It hadn't even been a day since Crimson saved him. Still, remembering the gywolli, Trace grinned.

He loved challenges.

...

Casper clenched his greatsword, blocking the clawed attack from the gywolli. Justina, the healer was flanked by two archers, thus keeping her safe.

Casper swung his greatsword in a wide arc, cutting through the gywolli like butter. Each kill awarded him Essence. The influx of these new demonic monsters in the Forest of Ascension was common knowledge among the elves.

What he didn't expect was for them to be so strong.

An arrow with extreme piercing power hit a gywolli on the head, and exited through the other side without losing momentum. Casper flashed his friend a smile of thanks before a notification interrupted their carnage.

[Struggle for Supremacy!]

...

The old man could sense it approaching.

His death.

It would not happen for a week, maybe two, but he could feel it approaching.

For a hundred years, he had lived in this forest s a hermit. And for a hundred years, he could not evolve his race to E-Grade. Thus, he would be doomed to die.

But Nishimura had already come to terms with his death a long time ago. That is why he was surprised when the Villainous Heavens gave him a notification.

[Struggle for Supremacy!]

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