Birth of the Demonic Sword

The flames danced in Noah's eyes as he remained on the sides, watching the encampment celebrate Lady Lena's death. Wine never stopped flowing in the hybrids' cups, and countless cries ran through the region, scaring away any lifeform that had taken those lands as their home.

It was impossible to witness that scene among humans. Most of them had lost their ability to celebrate so wholeheartedly. Only cultivators in the weaker ranks could aim to replicate that type of party.

A banquet filled with conversations about individualities and similar topics was the most cultivators in the higher ranks would do as a celebration. It wasn't in their nature to engage in the activities happening in front of Noah and Divine Demon's eyes.

Divine Demon mostly laughed during the celebrations. He even sat near the hybrids at some point and took a few cups of their wine for himself. Instead, Noah remained on the sides. His caution didn't allow him to relax.

Suddenly, Noah began to miss June. He had been on his own for entire millennia, and the party made him aware of that.

Noah didn't mind being alone. He actually preferred it most of the time. Yet, he had allowed himself to feel, so he couldn't stop that tinge of longing from seeping out of his mental sea and filling his mind.

'Hurry up,' Noah thought when June's face appeared in his mind. 'I might go too far away if you don't reach the Immortal Lands soon.'

"Like what you see?" Jordan said as she approached Noah.

Her large robe had gotten loose during the celebrations, and her right shoulder was now in the open for everyone to see. Her amber skin shone as the scarlet flames danced in the area and mixed with the azure radiance released by the ground.

"It is a strange scene," Noah replied as he turned toward the fire. "My lower plane couldn't offer something like this."

"Most lower planes have that issue," Jordan said while also turning toward the fire. "You aren't the first to stare at this scene in surprise. There aren't many hybrids even in the vastness of Heaven and Earth's system."

"It's only fair for us to be a minority," Noah admitted. "The other species won't even exist if we didn't have this weakness."

"You don't seem the type to care about fairness," Jordan teased him.

"I only care about my power," Noah replied. "Everything else is circumstantial."

"Many hybrids were like you, but they eventually accepted the Legion as their home," Jordan continued. "You can live how you want and do whatever you desire, but you will always be part of this organization. No one else can understand you."

Noah didn't answer anymore. Jordan was right, but he didn't like the idea of joining an organization, especially when he didn't know anything about it.

"Don't deny your nature," Jordan continued. "There are so few hybrids already, and even less like us. Dragons with a human shape should stay close. We have the strongest blood running through our veins. It's a pity to spill it with no one nearby to lick it."

'Maybe one day,' Noah concluded in his mind as he watched Jordan leaving to rejoin the celebrations.

The hybrids went on for days, but Noah didn't watch the whole party. He left at some point and climbed one of the mountains nearby to resume his training.

The noises of the celebration reached his ears, and the light of the flames illuminated his body, but Noah ignored everything around him. Nothing existed when he was cultivating. His mind focused on his centers of power and cut off everything else.

Noah knew what he needed to do to improve. He only needed time and many tests to obtain the power that he sought.

The celebration ended before Noah could achieve anything, and Divine Demon soon notified him that the encampment was about to set off. Ian would lead them to one of the cities in the Outer Lands, where a leader of the hybrid faction would evaluate them.

"I think it's time you tell me more about Supreme Thief's inheritance," Noah said as he interrupted his training and followed Divine Demon.

"The tales about this expert are quite legendary," Divine Demon explained. "It's not hard to learn about his existence. Every rank 8 being in the human domain also knows that the Legion controls his inheritance."

The group of hybrids waited for Divine Demon and Noah to arrive before setting off in the distance. The duo followed behind them but remained at some distance to keep their conversations private.

"Supreme Thief has been a rank 9 existence in his prime," Divine Demon said continued. "According to the legends, he has reached the peak of the cultivation journey by stealing from every organization. It didn't matter to which side they belonged. Supreme Thief has stolen every kind of technique, spell, and material from all the known forces. He didn't even spare the other inheritances."

Divine Demon couldn't contain his smile when he spoke about that expert. Noah even sensed a tinge of admiration leaking out of his aura.

"It is unclear whether he really died," Divine Demon explained. "We only know that he has disappeared for hundreds of thousands of years and that he has left his inheritance among the stormy edges of the higher plane. As the Immortal Lands expanded, the inheritance appeared."

'He created an inheritance in the middle of the storms of laws,' Noah thought. 'I wonder if he managed to see the world past the edges of the higher plane.'

"The appearance of an inheritance belonging to a rank 9 existence made the whole world go crazy," Divine Demon continued. "Every organization wanted to control it, but the hybrids have been smarter. They lifted the whole region with the inheritance and moved it to a secret location. The human domain has been unable to gather any information about it since then."

"How do you know that the Legion hasn't cleared the inheritance already?" Noah asked.

"This is the most interesting part," Divine Demon replied. "According to the legends, Supreme Thief's inheritance isn't a single place. It contains multiple areas meant for different qualities and abilities, all of them with the chance to give rewards in the ninth rank. I'm not underestimating the Legion. I only believe that no force in the world could clear it."

"And we went through this mess to enter this unclearable place, am I right?" Noah asked as a smile also appeared on his face.

"Of course!" Divine Demon replied. "I can't let anyone complete the trials before me. Supreme Thief was a real Demon, so I need to be his heir!"

"I might take it from under your nose if you aren't careful," Noah said in a teasing tone. "I did the same with your inheritance in the end."

"I expect nothing else from you, my heir!" Divine Demon said. "This is the inheritance of a rank 9 existence. Nothing should stop you from reaching its end."

"Let's try not to kill each other," Noah said before exploding into a laugh.

"We will keep things fair between us," Divine Demon replied as his eyes became cold, "But only between us."

Noah revealed a similar expression, and the duo fell silent as they followed the group of hybrids. They couldn't wait to see what Supreme Thief had created.