After his defeat against Typhon, Ery did not imdiately leave the Virtual Palace. Instead, he decided to take so ti to examine the Cosmic Bridge challenger rankings.
Standing within the quiet interface hall, he opened the record for Stage 7 challengers, allowing the long list of nas to scroll before his eyes.
There were a little over one thousand individuals had reached that stage, each one representing a formidable grand magus within the Magus Alliance. Many of them used aliases instead of their real nas, which made it difficult to identify exactly who stood behind each title.
While Ery studied the ranking board, Typhon leaned closer and peeked at the interface with casual curiosity.
Suddenly the hybrid pointed toward one of the nas.
"Oh... that's ."
His tone carried a faint hint of embarrassnt.
Ery followed the direction of his finger and saw the alias written on the board.
Little Cloud.
Typhon rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly before explaining himself.
"I tried to follow my grandfather's footsteps," he said. "But considering my lack of strength... the na seed appropriate."
Ery remained silent.
For a brief mont he wondered whether the hybrid truly lacked social awareness... or if he was subtly mocking him.
Continuing through the ranking list, Ery's gaze eventually paused when another na caught his attention.
The mont he saw it, his emotions stirred.
Sky Lord Astiel.
The strongest figure of the Astiel faction was listed among the challengers at the sa level.
That ant both of them now stood among the top one thousand martial experts within the Magus Alliance, a realization that reignited Ery's competitive spirit.
Without hesitation, he closed the ranking board and turned toward the hall's chanical administrator.
"I would like to attempt the Cosmic Bridge challenge."
The request was acknowledged instantly.
A calm synthetic voice echoed throughout the chamber.
[Level 5 Martial Path will begin in one minute. Prepare yourself.]
The world around him dissolved into radiant light.
Monts later, Ery found himself standing on the familiar floating battlefield of the Cosmic Bridge trial, facing the opponent he knew well.
His clone.
There was no hesitation.
Ery moved forward imdiately, his sword flashing as the two figures clashed in the center of the arena.
Although Ery had yet to grasp the Law of Origin he sought, he now possessed sothing entirely different.
The inheritance of the Stellar Beast Emperor.
The battle escalated quickly.
Steel collided with steel while cosmic energy surged violently across the platform, the two combatants exchanging blows at blinding speed.
The mont an opening appeared, Ery activated his half-primal transformation, allowing the savage instincts of the beast lineage to surge through his body. His aura intensified dramatically as his movents beca more brutal and direct.
Just as before, the clone mirrored the transformation.
Yet this ti the difference between them was clear.
The clone could replicate the techniques and strength Ery displayed, but it lacked the sa raw ferocity and instinct that now fueled Ery's attacks. With a roar, Ery pressed forward.
"ARGHHH!"
He unleashed the technique he had spent nearly two years refining.
[Star-Rending Cleaves]
Three devastating strikes descended like falling teors.
The clone attempted to mimic the sa technique in response.
The first cleave collided violently and was stopped.
The second cleave shattered the clone's defense and forced it backward across
the battlefield.
The third strike followed imdiately afterward.
Space itself seed to tear apart.
The clone was split cleanly in half.
Light erupted across the arena as the trial ended.
[You have completed Level 5]
[Reward: 2000 Palace Points]
Breathing heavily, Ery returned to the Cosmic Bridge Hall.
Only now did he notice that many grand magi had gathered nearby, watching
him with varying expressions.
So looked curious.
Others openly displayed hostility.
Whispers spread quietly throughout the hall.
"Who is Twilight Wolf?"
"He's really only two cosmos?"
"Another genius?"
"From the na... he must be a halfblood."
"Hmph... there are more and more of them appearing here."
Ery ignored the murmurs and focused on his interface instead.
Suddenly, multiple notifications appeared.
[You have received new ssages]
One after another began appearing.
[Cosmic Bridge Duel]
Ash Veil - Two Cosmos - Wager: 100 Palace Points
Silent Hollow - Three Cosmos - Wager: 100 Palace Points
Spear Current Two Cosmos - Wager: 100 Palace Points
More invitations followed, the number continuing to increase every second.
Typhon glanced over the notifications and chuckled.
"That's normal," he explained casually. "They're all Stage-5 rankers, and one
hundred points is the minimum wager."
Leaning against the railing, he continued his explanation. "Whenever a new challenger appears, people issue duels. So are curious,
so want to earn easy points, and others simply want practice."
After a brief pause, he added with a grin,
"And so just want to pressure newcors... especially halfbloods."
Typhon shrugged.
"You can ignore them all. There's no penalty."
But before he finished speaking, Ery had already made his decision.
He tapped the interface.
"Accept all."
Ery made the decision without the slightest hesitation, confirming a total of
twenty-two duel challenges in a single motion.
For him, it was an opportunity to refine his abilities through real combat, to understand where he truly stood among the grand magus of the Alliance, and perhaps most importantly, to release the frustration that still lingered after his
recent defeat.
Typhon peeked at the notifications appearing one after another and let out an amused chuckle.
"Haha... Grand Uncle, I like you even more now," he said with a wide grin. "Go
beat them all."
Before another word could be exchanged, the Virtual Palace system activated and the surrounding space dissolved into bright light. When the glow faded, Ery found himself standing within a vast arena that closely resembled the battlefield of the Cosmic Bridge trials, its endless platform suspended within a void of shifting energy.
A chanical voice echoed calmly throughout the arena.
[Cosmic Duel will begin in one minute. Prepare yourself.]
As the countdown began, information regarding the duel rules flowed directly
into Ery's consciousness.
Unlike the Cosmic Bridge trial, this duel placed almost no restrictions on its participants; combatants were free to use any technique, transformation, or artifacts they possessed, and the fight would only conclude once one side was
defeated or voluntarily surrendered.
Another detail soon followed: these duels could be viewed by anyone within
the cosmic bridge hall.
Ery dismissed the thought of spectators and focused entirely on the figure
standing across the bridge.
His first opponent.
Ash Veil.
Excalibur appeared firmly within Ery's hand as twilight energy comnced
gathering around his body, the familiar aura of his Twilight Transformation forming gradually like dark flas wrapping around his limbs.
Across the battlefield, Ash Veil mirrored his preparations with visible
confidence. Two short blades appeared within the man's hands, one in each palm, their sharp tallic glow revealing the unmistakable aura of high-grade artifacts. Even from a distance, Ery could sense that the weapons were no less formidable than his own sword.
The countdown reached its final mont.
[Duel Begin]
The barrier separating them vanished, yet Ash Veil did not imdiately move. Instead, he tilted his head slightly and stared at Ery with open disdain. "Your kind have no right to stand here," he said coldly. "Go back to your cages."
A faint smile appeared on Ery's face. Defeating this man would definitely relieve a portion of his irritation.
Without another word, Ery stepped forward and swung Excalibur in a powerful arc, sending a blade of condensed cosmic energy tearing across the battlefield. The attack moved with lethal precision, yet the mont it reached
its target Ash Veil's body dissolved into swirling smoke. His battlefield domain had been activated. Within seconds the entire arena was engulfed by rolling clouds of mist that
spread outward like a living storm, turning the battlefield into a shifting ocean of grey shadows. Ery narrowed his eyes as faint movents stirred within the fog, and then the first attack erged from the darkness. Ash Veil's twin blades flashed through the smoke like lightning.
The man moved with ghostlike speed, appearing and disappearing within the
mist while striking from unpredictable angles. Several shallow cuts appeared across Ery's arms and shoulders before he could fully track the movent,
thin lines of blood forming along his skin as the blades slipped through the gaps in his defense. Ery clicked his tongue in mild annoyance.
The swirling mist and intangible movents reminded him strongly of Typhon's transformation ability, yet the difference between the two was obvious the mont he observed it carefully. Compared to Typhon's fluid mastery of the technique, Ash Veil's version felt crude and incomplete.
A faint glint appeared within Ery's eyes. Khaos energy surged outward from
his body.
Battlefield Domain.
The surrounding space compressed instantly as imnse spatial pressure erupted across the arena like an invisible tidal wave. The mist that had filled the battlefield shattered almost imdiately under the overwhelming force, collapsing inward as if crushed by an unseen hand.
Ash Veil's figure was violently forced out of hiding. The man dropped to one knee as the domain's pressure weighed down on his
body, his expression shifting from confidence to disbelief in an instant. He struggled to stand, his muscles trembling as he tried to resist the crushing
force surrounding him.
But Ery had already sealed the distance.
Excalibur rose in his hand.
The sword descended in a clean, decisive arc.
"NO-!"
The blade struck before the cry could finish.
Light exploded across the arena as Ash Veil's body dissolved into particles,
signaling the end of the duel.
The system voice echoed once again.
[Victory] [Reward: 100 Palace Points]
Ery stood quietly as the battlefield reset around him.
Twenty-one challengers remained.
And the next duel would begin shortly.
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