It was the beginning of an early morning, and the rays of sunlight were just grazing the horizon. At the base of the Denlog mountains, several people had gathered. They had varied hair and eye colors. Some were blue, some were red, some were green, some were orange, and some had other colors. Looking around the gathering, the only thought on Mikart’s mind was, What a mess. Whose bullshit idea was this, even?

  Chivis, standing beside him, commented, “What a mess. Whose batshit idea was this, even?”

  Mikart just gave her a sidelong glance. “Mikart, wanna bet how long until they turn on each other and start a war?” Lester added from his left side. Mikart just shook his head at his words.

  A total of fourteen Ascenders and sixty-six Paragons were gathered here. And nearly half of them had irreconcilable enmity with each other. Peace was only maintained due to the presence of Rank One Ascenders such as Agor. But it was not hard to predict what would happen once supervision was removed inside the mountain range.

  “Is it even useful to have Paragons participate in this search?” Chivis questioned.

  Mikart slightly nodded his head. “Normally, no. But this time, the Church of Fire has brought out several relics. If anyone finds any traces of them, it will be transmitted to the others. Also, the Paragons have been given some means to save their lives. Moreover, the rewards to be given out are quite tempting, even for me.”

  “What about those from inside the continent?” Chivis asked.

  Both Chivis and Mikart glanced at Lester. Shrugging his shoulders, he said, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

  “Your grandfather is a high-ranking member of the Church of Fire,” Mikart and Chivis both said together.

  “Okay, I guess I should tell you.” Raising his chest, Lester replied, “They are not moving yet. As for the exact reason for this, nobody knows.”

  Hearing Lester’s words, Mikart fell into deep contemplation. The main reason they were being sent after the remnants of the Church of Frost was to retrieve the thing stolen from the tower. But they didn’t have any immediate conflict with them. It seemed like someone was stirring the pot while using them as chess pieces, and that someone was in quite a high place if he was even able to mobilize the Rank One Ascenders.

  Suddenly, Mikart’s head was slapped, and he felt a sharp pain. Clutching his head, he angrily glared at Lester beside him.

  “You were making that face as if we were going to die. I just thought of bringing you back before you start spouting some nonsense about us all dying going ahead,” Lester confidently defended his actions.

  Chivis, who was raising her hand high above, lightly brought it back before alerting Mikart. This time she was late; maybe next time, she thought.

  Just as Mikart was about to start cursing, all people were told to gather. Standing before them were three Rank One Ascenders, with one of them being Agor. A blue-haired man among the three stepped forward and started speaking.

  “Most of you may be aware of the reason we have been gathered here. We only have one mission, and that is to retrieve the power core taken by the remnants of a fallen Church. They are strong and vicious. Some of you may be acquainted with them, and for some, they may be completely new people. But remember my words: once we go inside, there will be no distinction between your previous relations. Consider all of them your enemy.”

  “All the Paragons have already been given protective measures, and unless you anger your enemies too much, you will be able to escape easily. And I kindly advise you not to try to be a hero; escape for your life. All Ascenders below Rank One will travel in groups. We don’t know who we will encounter inside, and the atmosphere inside is also unfavorable for Soul Casters, so try to avoid fighting as much as possible. That’s all from my side.”

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  Then the man stepped back, and Agor came forward. He gave some more safety precautions about the situation inside and told everyone to be careful. After all the talking was done, everyone formed groups and made their way inside the mountains.

  Only the Rank One Ascenders were left behind. “Are you sure this is the right decision, Agor?” the blue-haired man asked Agor, who was standing beside him.

  “I honestly don’t know. I am already too old for this. Even my news channels from the Church are outdated. And this thing is arranged by the Church along with the World Awakener Association.” Slightly narrowing his eyes, he continued. “Something is going on here. Just keep your wits about you and don’t engage them if not necessary.” The other two just nodded at this, and they also went in different directions inside the mountains.

  Meanwhile, Neva was traversing a small lake made of lava. She again looked at the map her teacher had given her and thought, This doesn’t look like a small lake at all.

  Some fish jumped at her from the lava, and she just squashed them down without paying much attention to them. It had been decided that Ascenders would bring small groups of people with them when they traversed the mountain. But her teacher had assigned her another task at that time, and she was stuck here with this map.

  At the same time, Ulrich was leading a small group of Awakeners and Paragons through a thick forest. Suddenly, the large plants beside them rustled, and a large black python leaped at them. But Ulrich did not have to lift a finger. A Paragon standing beside him had a spell lit around his arms, and a large chain made of ice shot out from his hand and captured the python midair.

  The python thrashed after being bound by the chain and was completely helpless. Just as the man activated another spell to end the large predator, Ulrich lightly said, “Let’s leave it like that.” Hearing these words, the man retracted his spells and left the python alone. After they had gone some distance, the ice melted, and the python was freed. It gave the fearful people one last look and slithered away.

  “Why did you pardon it?” the man asked Ulrich. Instead of replying, Ulrich just continued walking. When the man thought that he would not get an answer, he heard, “I didn’t pardon it. I just gave it a chance. It was saved by itself.”

  At another place at that time, Lex was walking behind his group in a snowy area. The pain in his chest had subsided a little, but he knew his time was running out. The main problem was the inherent property of his Ascension Spell. Everything has a positive as well as a negative side. His Ascension Spell used this property to create a negative ice, which perfectly countered normal ice. But it was also most fatal to him, on whose ice it was based. For others, it was just harmful, but for him, it was poison. It was slowly eating at him from the inside. He just wished that he would at least meet a meaningful end.

  The shouts coming from ahead pulled him back to his senses. A large snow bear, nearly five meters tall, had appeared in front of them. He just raised his hand, and a large ice lance formed over it. It was launched at the snow bear, too fast for it to react. It was impaled in the shoulder and started roaring in anger. Even with blood flowing down and dyeing its fur red, it charged at the people ahead. Lex just let out a sigh and, raising his hand, a bigger and stronger lance was formed. It was launched at the approaching bear and directly pierced its back, skewering it to the land. It struggled painfully for a moment and then went still.

  Looking at the awestruck looks of others around him, he simply said, “Let’s continue.” The slight pain in his heart was completely hidden from others.

  At another place, Lumian was sitting under a waterfall. The falling water struck his body and made loud thumping sounds. There was a movement from the Void Realm, and he felt someone scan him. Slowly opening his eyes, he looked ahead. The space in front tore open, and Agor stepped out.

  “So, how was it?” Lumian asked in an expressionless voice.

  “Just as I suspected. Someone is pulling the strings in the absence of the Goddess. Even the plan this time seemed like just sending the others to their deaths,” Agor replied in a serious voice.

  Lumian just nodded at this. “So, are you working with me or not?”

  Agor paused for some time and said, “Does anyone from your side know of this?” he asked. Lumian lightly shook his head.

  “So, you are using them all as just a lure to bring out the master in the dark. Their lives are of no concern to you?” Agor asked in a perplexed voice.

  “The only thing that matters is how many of my enemies are killed. Other things are inconsequential,” Lumian replied in the same expressionless voice. “If their lives can bring me the names of the people hidden behind the scenes, then I will trade it any day of the year. So, are you with me or not?”

  Agor just stared at the man in front of him. How the mighty have fallen. Gritting his teeth, he made the biggest decision of his life. “Let’s take them out.”

  Finally, a faint smile appeared on Lumian’s face.