‘Impossible? Hm,’ Ryuk, who had already turned off his insignia, hardly believed that it would be impossible for others to do the same.
Indeed, it could be difficult, but knowing well that the flag bearers were not simply individuals like those he had seen so far, there were many possibilities.
Even he could think of ways to deal with the insignia, such as cutting off his hand and using a regeneration healing technique to regrow a new hand, or employing a technique based on poison to cut off the flow of mana from that particular area by paralyzing it, and so on.
Therefore, given that it was utterly out of the question, it must be noted that the individuals involved here were flag bearers, not just any random people to whom typical logical reasoning could be applied.
[Host, what do you think?]
The system definitely did not try to prove itself correct as inquired.
“Esme, change my eye color,” Ryuk glanced towards Esme, who had just arrived beside him while glancing and observing the nearby area due to sensing the intensity of mana increasing in the surroundings as if a fight had occurred between someone who used mana instead of internal energy.
Even if that was not the case, the one on the dominating side must have had so much mana that it repelled the internal energy in the nearby surrounding area.
“Eye color?” Esme glanced at him for a few moments before feeling déjà vu, but observing the ground in front of her, she felt she should follow what he said.
Considering that the remnants of mana from the battle were so intense, it was possible for the individuals involved to be a threat.
‘Eye color?’ Yao Lian also arrived near him, glanced at his face, observing his unique orange-colored eyes before averting her gaze. She did not care if he wanted to change his color, even though she found his eyes definitely worth looking at, but she decided to remain quiet.
“Haah…. Y-young—Thud!” Bonebreaker hardly arrived near Ryuk, directly falling to the ground as he pulled his body like an insect, trying to crawl toward him.
The other sidekicks behind him did the same, appearing like four big worms approaching him while crawling like earthworms on that blood-stained ground with several small marks.
“I told you all to stay at the Wei family,” Ryuk said in a firm tone to the group with a calm demeanor, casting a glance toward Bonebreaker, who was capable of covering at least half the distance from the ship while crawling. Meanwhile, the other three individuals lay on the ground with three horses resting nearby.
“N-no, that’s,” Bonebreaker, suddenly hearing his cold tone, felt a chill run through him, and his pupils trembled rapidly as if trying to find a way to avoid angering this young master. He promptly kowtowed and hit his head on the ground before yelling out loud, “Young Master, your every step shakes the heavens and earth, and even the winds whisper your name. How could this unworthy one resist the honor of following the path you carve through the heavens!”
“Ye-yes!” Following the steps of their leader, who had just kowtowed, the other three instantly did the same, understanding that if they had crossed the boundary just now, it was possible for them to turn into blood pulp. They hit their heads on the ground with hands in front, their voices reverberating subsequently.
“To serve you, Young Master, is to serve destiny itself. I follow in your wake not because I must, but because no other path could lead me closer to witnessing true greatness.”
“I-indeed, the very laws of the universe bend to your will, Young master. How could a mere mortal servant like me do anything but follow you, the one who stands on the verge of immortality?”
“Y-yes, A-and, a-nd, to be near you, Younv master, is to be close to the source of all power. Even the strongest of cultivators would envy the honor bestowed upon me by following in your divine footsteps.”
[ O_o ]
‘Eh?’ Esme was taken aback hearing those words, which went over her head, as she glanced towards Ryuk. For a moment, she felt as if she were seeing a God due to so much praise being heaped upon him by those four.
‘The fuck?’ Even Yao Lian felt her etiquette crumbling, her eyes widening slightly and her mouth twitching for the first time in her life at the sight of people engaging in flattery at this level.
“Esme,” Ryuk called out to Esme, feeling that it might be better to deal with these four after he finished this trial. Turning towards Esme, he added, “Do it.”
“Huh? Oh, yes.” Esme, who was looking at this scene, nodded. Instantly, Ryuk’s pupils started to turn golden, appearing the same as hers as she added, “Now we look matching.”
“!?…. Th-this?” Yao Lian suddenly noticing how, out of nowhere, the young master’s eyes turned golden felt her eyes widen, as she had never seen someone change their body features this easily.
“You all will take care of the ship, since only we can enter,” Ryuk further ordered, as all four of them, hearing his words, nodded their heads. Before he glanced towards the ship where, on its own, Liu Wei’s body started to slowly hover in the air.
But due to being under an illusion, no one except Esme and him could see it. Covered in dense ether, it started to float in mid-air using telekinesis as it approached one of the horses.
[Arise ＼(^o^)／ ]
The horses stood on their own before Liu Wei’s body, in an unconscious state, was placed on one of the horses, which then started to move forward, accompanied by the other two.
“Wait? Why can the horses go but we can’t?” Number 1, seeing how three horses were accompanying them, inquired, feeling discriminated against.
[Because horses are allowed, not donkeys. (づ￣ ³￣)づ]
“….Let’s move.” Ryuk, ignoring the system’s words, gestured with his hand, prompting Yao Lian and Esme to nod before they made their way towards the gate while accompanied by those three horses, one of which carried Liu Wei’s invisible body.
Soon enough, they arrived near the portal before entering it. The moment Ryuk and the others stepped through, it was as if they had entered a whole new dimension.
The world, which to be precise, was the main peak, revealed its enormous size shrouded in clouds, showing the height at which they were, far greater than any previous mountains.
Right now, they could even see clouds with cherry blossoms and beautiful lotuses adorning the place; it appeared like heaven.
The path was made of cobblestones with a very calm and attractive design filled with streams of crystal-clear water carrying colorful fish.
But unlike the serene vibe this place gave, the presence of more than hundreds of people standing around filled the atmosphere with hustle and bustle.
Though it appeared as if it were the initial peak, there was a portal shrouded in green mist, shimmering as if a dimension to another place existed in a faraway corner, suggesting that after successfully completing this stage, one could enter it.
As Ryuk, accompanied by others, moved, a voice directed towards him reached his ears.
“What is a weakling at the Foundational Establishment level doing here?”
