Tree of souls (1/2)

Ace flew out of the room which he opened the doors to, his body landing in the pond creating a splash of water, the fishes lucky enough to have avoided him.

"Ace, didn't I tell you to enter the first room around the corner? Why did you enter the room before the corner?"

Rain rushed up to Ace who had just gotten out of the pond after settling his sister Jasmine.

Controlling his own flames to a gentle degree of temperature, Ace evaporated the water from his robe and skin.

"I have no clue either, I just heard a voice calling out to me. By the time I reacted to what was going on, a mysterious force from the room blew me away."

Ace explained after recollecting his thoughts, only to realise that something was amiss.

What was that voice falling out to him?

"Rain, are you keeping a secret from me?"

"Ace, this is a family secret. If you're still curious about the secrets of that room, only my father can bring you into that room safely."

Rain explained calmly to Ace's surprise, as though this was a common question he received.

"I understand, please follow me to your father's room this time." Ace said towards Rain as the two made their way to Rain's father room.

Along the way, Ace managed to gather more details about what happened to the Peacock Auction Hall Master.

Apparently, at that point of time years ago, he had left to find a soul reformation fruit which could bring one back from the dead, if their soul is still intact and present that is.

From just this, Ace was able to deduce the identity of the being who had called out to him.

It was most likely begging for him to save her husband, but because of her inability and futile attempt to speak, it became a lethal attack instead.

"Rain, do you know what exactly happened from there onwards?"

"I only heard this from a senior who has been travelling with my father since a young age, before I was even born in fact."

"After my father and him entered the mysterious forest, they realised that even the weakest demon beast in the outer areas was in the Demon Lord realm."

"Without a doubt, they were given false information and despite this, they still pushed into the inner areas and managed to obtain the soul reformation fruit."

"But before they could make a full retreat, a Demon Emperor from the core area appeared and in their attempt to escape, my father was injured by the Demon Emperor."

"Ever since then, my father remained unconscious and the only reason he's still alive is because of the hefty price his friend paid to keep him alive."

"I see, you father had a good friend huh?"

"He did, until that friend of his died three years ago to the Grand Archmage of the Magic Castle, the one who had set up my father."

"Don't you hate the Grand Archamge?"

"I do, but what can I do with this pathetic amount of strength I have. Compared to a mage who has the potential to become a Martial Emperor, I'm worth nothing even if I reach my peak one day."

*Creak*

Opening the doors, Ace saw the man who was laying on his bed unconscious, but when Ace scanned the body of the Peacock Auction Hall master, he couldn't contain the shock as he said, "Your father is still alive!"

"What did you just say?" Rain reacted in surprise as the towel he was holding in his hand dropped onto the ground.

"I don't understand why your father is still unconscious yet, but your father's body is still brimming with life force. Now you tell me, is there anything else that you're keeping a secret from me?" Ace inquired once again, slight annoyance flashing in his eyes.

Rain understood the gravity of the situation, especially with his father's life on the line, but it was a tough decision to make.

He would either have to forsake the trust his father had in him, or break that trust between them in order to save his life.

But after logical thinking, Rain made the decision which he believed to be the right decision.

Even if his father resents him for this, this was a secret that couldn't be contained if he wanted his father to live, not unconsciously, but as a man who can take responsibility.

"Father, forgive me for this decision, but mother is still waiting for you." Rain whispered towards his father as a drop of tear fell onto the wooden plank beneath his feet.

"Ace. Have you heard about the soul separation art?"

Ace shook his head as his mind drifted off to the mysterious force that sent him crashing into the pool.

If he wasn't wrong, then that woman was most likely Rain's mother.

"The soul separation art is when a cultivator allows his soul to leave the body, in order to search for someone whose soul is lost in that mysterious dimension, but there's one major problem right now. My father had warned me to not bring him back until he found her."

"Rain, this is just a hypothesis of mine, but do you think that the mysterious force that sent me flying would be your mother?"

"It's possible, but what would be the reason my mother sent you out of the room? Could it be that she was trying to seek help because my father had found her?"

Ace nodded his head and followed up with the conversation, agreeing with Rain after a series of discussion as he got ready to bring Rain's father back from the mysterious dimension.

"Rain, no matter what happens, do not disturb me or the dire consequences will be more than we can handle." Ace reiterated once again before sitting on the stool, his fingers placed on Rain's father wrist.

Closing his eyes, he used his mental energy to locate the dimension they were trapped in without much difficulty, but there was one thing Ace didn't know yet, that is the fact that he was only able to locate Rain's father because of the unique mental energy he cultivated.

If it was anyone else with mental energy that doesn't dominate him, that person would never be able to find Rain's father and mother regardless of how much effort they put in.

With a swoosh, Ace realised that he was stranded in a mysterious space. There was a cursive path of glowing white which contrasted with the pitch black around him as he followed the path.

After about an hour, Ace came to a stop when he saw a gigantic tree which had people trapped within it. Even without counting, Ace could tell that there were hundreds of people being trapped within the tree.

"Young boy, leave right now before it's too late! Tell Rain that we're sorry!" Rain's mother called out anxiously when she saw Ace who should have backed off after her attempt to blast him away.

"Young boy, don't listen to that bitch! Just save me right now and I promise that you'll be heavily rewarded." A man wearing a noble purple robe cursed and threatened despite the alluring 'rewards' he was speaking of.

"Hoho, young boy, rescue this old man and I assure you that you'll step into the Martial Emperor one day under the guidance of a Martial Ancestor." A bizarre old man laughed.

"Young boy, save everyone and you'll regret it, the tree of souls will condemn you to the deepest layers of hell." A young prince clad in his light-weighted armor and defensive equipment warned.

Out of everyone, he was the only one standing even though there was no reason to, this was the only reason why Ace's attention was drawn to this young prince.

"The soul of trees? This young prince here, can you explain the situation to me?"

The young prince looked down towards Ace with astonishment in his eyes as he thought to himself, how did a young boy like him even find this place?

"The soul of trees was the being which created this dimension and each living being trapped by it, will be purified into a mysterious fruit that benefits cultivators greatly every thousand years, but those who are trapped and converted into those fruits, will perish and cease to exist."

"Am I unable to bring anyone out of this place?"

"You can, but it comes at a hefty price. In order to save a person, you'll have to defeat a Martial Lord first realm guard, one whose combat strength exceeds those of peerless geniuses you've met until now."

"To save a second person, you'll have to defeat two of those exceptional guards in the Martial Lord third realm."

"To save a third person, you'll have to defeat four of those extraordinary guards in the Martial Lord fourth realm, not to mention that the disparity in strength only increases with the difference in between each cultivation realm."

"Why are you telling me this?" Ace asked with a thankful smile on his face.

"I just hope that you can help me to look after my brother, Lancelot. He may not know about me, but he's definitely my blood related brother whose birth was delayed for hundreds of years to be nourished in the pool of tribulations."

"I see, that gives me a reason to not leave you behind. Don't worry, I'll save that couple and you, as for the rest, they can be left to their own demise."

"Don't make such foolish decisions, leave this place right now while you still have the chance!" The young prince warned at the top of his voice, but Ace turned around with a determined gaze as he stared towards the tree of souls and demanded to save three people.

"Young boy, leave right now, I need you to tell my son that…" Before Rain's father could finish his sentence, a soundproof barrier prevented his voice from reaching Ace.

"Challenger, I accept your challenge. Bring it on."