Chapter 240 - The Lion

Suddenly part of the canyon wall turned to ink, and Luar emerged from there. Before Wain fought with him, Luar was the head of the strongest organization on the north side. After that, Luar went traveling.

"What is Luar doing here?" Wain muttered.

"Luar, who is that?" Zero asked, puzzled.

"That's a pretty slick and active guy who seems to have found himself some new problems."

Whooooooosh.

The next moment Luar jumped high up and landed on the bridge. He was breathing heavily and didn't immediately notice Wain and the other men.

Wain decided to check something out, and his Seal of Darkness glowed brightly. Luar sensed this and turned in his direction.

'I see. He's made more progress than Teresa and Vineta.' Wain thought, feeling the power emanating from Luar's seal.

It was not as powerful as Wain's but definitely stronger than Vineta and Teresa's. Luar had a Seal of Darkness of rank one, which meant he owned one Void.

"Wain?" Luar exclaimed.

Zero became alert, and darkness began to emanate from her hands. She, unlike Wain, did not know this man and was ready to take the fight any second.

"Zero, calm down. I doubt Luar is our enemy."

"What?! Of course, I'm not the enemy of humans! I barely escaped the monster that was after me. I couldn't bring him into my zone, so I decided to go back to the planet. It was a surprise that I ended up in the middle of a canyon, but I was able to get out of that mess." Luar said quickly, gesturing with his hands.

"Huh, you can find a lot of interesting and dangerous things in that place."

Luar wanted to say something, but suddenly Gisle interrupted them.

"What's going on here? Who are you?" Gisle said coldly.

"Gisle, this is the former leader of the north side of town, Luar. I told you about him."

"Hmm? Did he come here to fight? Why did he end up in our backs? That looks suspicious." Gisle muttered warily.

"I'm not going to fight you. How many times do I have to tell you? This is just a chance encounter and nothing more. You've assembled a whole posse. It looks like something interesting is going on."

"Huh, you're right." Wain said, "We're going to take over the south side and clear it of monsters. Will you come with us?"

"Wain, are you sure?" Gisle asked.

"Yes, I don't see anything wrong with that. Luar, do you agree?"

Luar scratched the back of his head and, after a while, nodded. He had spent several days in the World of Darkness before, and he didn't mind fighting monsters in his homeworld.

"Okay, I trust you Wain." Gisle said briefly and turned back.

Wain wanted to ask Luar about his Seal of Darkness, but this was not the right time or place. Luar had the same purpose. 

He was the owner of one Void and understood that if Wain's seal was stronger, it meant he had more Voids under his control.

...

They passed the bridge a few minutes later and encountered the first monsters on the south side. They were mostly mutated insects, zombies, and beasts. These were the most common types of monsters on the city's streets.

The base of the main organization in the slums was visible from anywhere in the city. Only the most powerful organization members participated in this operation, so the monsters could not stop them even for a second.

Wain, Zero, and Luar didn't even enter the fray once. They were at the very end, and the monsters just didn't have time to get to them. They were killed right away.

'Gisle did a good job, but that's not surprising. These people probably hunt in Dungeons and Nests every day, but it's still not as effective as World of Darkness. I can get thousands of souls in the arenas, but I have to be strong enough to do that.'

...

In three hours, the group of Last Light reached the base of the main organization in the slums. They offered no resistance, as Gisle seriously wounded their strongest members in several attacks.

This was inevitable, as the people in the slum were the weakest in the entire city. 

They struggled to fight off monsters and had no food. While the members of Last Light were training and getting hundreds of souls from Dungeons and Nest, the people in the slums were worried about survival.

Gisle didn't go straight to the tourist district. Instead, he sent dozens of people to clear the area of monsters. 

He decided to proceed gradually since he knew their operation would be successful. The difference in their strength was too significant.

Wain decided to talk to Luar about the seals.

"Luar, would you like to invite me into your area?" Wain asked smiling.

"Ah, Wain, I was just coming to talk to you about that. As I understand it, your zone is much stronger than mine, right?"

"Yes, let's go to the spatial rift. We don't have much time. In a few hours, the slum will be cleared of monsters, and we'll head to the next sector."

"Okay, I hear you, let me focus. Finding spatial rifts isn't easy." Luar said and closed his eyes.

He headed toward the ruined building, and part of the wall turned to ink. Wain followed him.

Inside the spatial rupture were three passageways. The first was a door of ink leading into a random, enemy a Void.

On the left was the entrance to Wain's Void. It was a massive gate of blue wood, covered with a thick layer of ice and snow. 

On the right was a golden gate burning with golden flames. On the gate was a sign in the shape of a lion opening its mouth wide.

"Not bad. That's definitely your style." Wain muttered.

"Well, compared to your gate, mine looks pathetic and ridiculous."

"Huh, that's natural, okay, give me an invitation."

"Sure." Luar said, and his Seal of Darkness flashed brightly.

A shard of gold flew from his body and penetrated Wain's chest. Then Luar opened the gate, and Wain followed him.

Luar's zone was very different from what Wain had seen before. This zone was an area of stone and golden trees with yellow flame burning foliage.

The monsters here were appropriate. Their bodies were golden, and they all possessed fire powers.

'Hmm, it seems the foundation of this area is a mixed attribute of gold and fire. The diversity of the World of Darkness is actually great.' Wain thought as he considered flora and fauna of the area.

Wain wasn't going to fight Luar and take Void from him. He wanted to see how the other man ran the zone.

"Wain, are your resources growing in the zone, too?"

"Yeah, my Void is pretty big, so I have several resources. As far as I know, you're only supposed to have one kind of resource, right?"

"Yes, my zone is the lowest ranked, but I'm happy with my current position. The bonuses I get from owning this zone are amazing. I have nothing to complain about." Luar said and headed for the golden tree.

He plucked a yellow, square fruit from the branch and tossed it to Wain. 

[Golden Cubefruit (First Chronicle, Rare Rating)

This fruit will be a perfect decoration for any table and great for those who are not afraid of the flame hidden inside the fruit.

It contains a lot of energy and has a favorable effect on creatures with the attribute of fire, gold, and their combinations. Also, Golden Cubefruit briefly increases the resistance in the elements of gold and fire by 5%]

Wain lightly tossed the fruit up and then tasted it. He immediately felt his mouth burn, as if he had eaten a very hot pepper, but then the spiciness was replaced by a pleasant sweetness.

"Not bad. Is there anything else interesting in your area?"

Luar shrugged, "Monsters, trees, and these fruits are all my riches. There's actually more, though."

"Hmm?"

"I'm trying to figure out how the World of Darkness works, and so I've been entering different spatial rifts many times lately. I went to a strange place and found an unusual round sphere there. This thing is somehow in my body, like souls. I'll show you." Luar said, and his Seal of Darkness glowed.

'A round sphere? A strange space?' Wain wondered.

'Isn't that...' After a few seconds, Wain realized what Luar was talking about, and he quickly shouted, "Wait, stop!"

However, it was too late, a bright, white pearl flew out of Luar's body, and he grabbed it with his hands.

"What is it? It's only a small sphere. Why are you so worried?" Luar was puzzled.

"Luar, you fucking idiot, the orb in your hands is a Soul Pearl, and Pearl Hunter is coming for it now." Wain said seriously, and his tone was cold.

Only at that moment did Luar begin to understand the seriousness of the situation. He did not know Pearl Hunters were, but Wain's wariness frightened him.

"Okay, I get it. I'll clean it up." Luar said in a hurry and tried to bring Soul Pearl back, but he failed.

Tremble.

Suddenly, space shuddered, and many cracks went across the sky.

'Damn, this isn't a Purgatory zone. Will Pearl Hunter be chained? If not, we're screwed...' Wain pondered.

All exits and entrances from Void were blocked during the damage to the space. The only way out was the crack that appeared in the sky. 

However, it was a path to open dark space without the portal. Wain's body would be torn apart in the first instant.

To get back, they had to defeat the enemy invading their territory. There was no other way out of this situation.

"Luar, prepare for a deadly battle."

"These Pearl Hunters, who are they? How strong are they?"

"One of them practically killed me. Another one had such overwhelming power that it completely changed the whole situation. I managed to survive, but they are certainly dangerous. I hope it's not one of the 'Pillars'."

"Pillars?"

"They are the eleven strongest races in this world. You must have learned by now that humans are not the only sentient beings, especially in the World of Darkness."

Luar nodded and prepared for battle. The situation was unexpected, but he was confident that they could withstand the challenge together with Wain.

The monsters also prepared for battle. They were wary and sensed the danger coming from the crack in the sky. They were going to defend their home.

"Luar, order the monsters to stay away unless you want to be the only inhabitant of this zone by the end of the battle. The monsters in the Rank-E zone are unlikely even to scratch a Pearl Hunter."

"Okay, I hear you."

Wain immediately activated several of his skills. He combined Shattered Part with Forgotten Monarch's Sword, and wind gauntlets appeared around his hands. He didn't use any form or a Beyond yet.

First, he had to see who their opponent would be and what abilities he had. Also, as a last resort, Wain would absorb a Soul Pearl to restore energy reserves.

Crackle.

When all the monsters on Luar's orders stepped back and hid, the cracks in the sky began to grow larger.

Then the sky began to shatter into many pieces like a mirror, and Wain and Luar saw their enemy.

It was a tall man with pale skin, amber eyes, and white hair. He was dressed in loose white and gold robes, and his muscular torso was exposed. In his hand was a golden sword shining brightly.

The man had a yellow stripe on his head. However, that was not the most important thing.

Above the man's head hovered a golden, glowing hoop, a halo. The man also had two massive, white wings.

The enemy that Wain and Luar faced was an angel whose blood purity exceeded 75%.