Birth of the Demonic Sword

"Space here is extremely frail," King Elbas explained to Noah and the two hybrids. "We can't unleash our full power, or massive cracks will open. You should even limit your physical strength to the minimum. You don't want to end up on the other side. Trust me. I have been there."

Noah diverted his eyes when King Elbas said that. He didn't want to tease the expert during his explanation of the Void Zone.

"Strange magical beasts occupy this area," King Elbas continued, pretending that he didn't see Noah's gesture. "The black crystals are on their head. I suggest you take them out of the void and collect them afterward."

The last statement confused the trio, and their minds expanded to inspect the region next to them. The natural pressure radiated by their mental waves broke the frail space and created small cracks as they flew through the sky, but no magical beast appeared in their range.

"Look on the other side," King Elbas said when he saw their confusion.

The trio's mental waves entered the cracks at that point, and a stunning scene appeared in their minds. Countless black tentacles fused with the blackness of the environment as they floated among the blackness of the void.

Noah could sense more than a hundred different lifeforms among that mass of tentacles. He didn't feel any creature in the eighth rank, but his worry didn't diminish.

"How can they live there?" Noah asked.

As an expert in the magical beasts' field, Noah desired to learn more about that species. Those creatures had set their lair in the void, which didn't have "Breath". Also, they managed to remain in the same spot even if the tentacles never stopped moving.

"Technically, they don't live there," King Elbas promptly explained as his curiosity became more intense. "They live on the border of the dimensions, opening cracks to seize the "Breath" that they need to live. Their home is between the Immortal Lands and the void!"

"Can they sense us?" Noah asked as his curiosity resonated with King Elbas'.

"Of course," King Elbas answered. "We will be meat bags stepping into their territory."

"If the region is so frail," Jordan joined the conversation, "Why are we working together? Space won't withstand our pressure if we concentrate it in a small area."

"We won't be in the same area," King Elbas replied. "We will take different corners of the region and engage in separate hunts. I need you only to lure more magical beasts away."

Everything became clear in the trio's minds at that point. King Elbas didn't actually want help. He needed to divide the attention of the pack to improve his success rate.

That discovery didn't make Noah regret his decision to team up with the Royal. They would all get a better chance to seize the crystals if they hunted in different areas. Those benefits didn't apply only to King Elbas.

"If one ends up on the other side," Don asked. "Can't we simply create a passage in the void? Those creatures would be our signal. I don't see why everyone is so scared of this place."

"Are you implying that you can charge at an entire pack of magical beasts with countless limbs in their habitat and win?" King Elbas asked as a tinge of sarcasm leaked into his voice. "Try not to survive too much in the void. Those creatures won't come out if they have targets on the other side."

Don realized how hard that task was when King Elbas described it. The frail area contained an entire pack of magical beasts at various levels. Only a rank 8 existence could feel confident about that battle.

King Elbas explained a few more details. He described what he had learnt about those creatures and their various features. He made a list of their strong and weak points and briefly explained his previous hunt.

The octopus-like creatures were weak, but they attacked together. Moreover, their tentacles were the toughest part of their bodies, while weak spots were on the other side.

Knowing their weaknesses won't help in the fight until they successfully managed to pull those beasts back into the Immortal Lands. That task would be easy anywhere else, but it was quite challenging in an area with such a frail space.

After the explanation ended, the group took four different spots around the Void Zone and used their inscribed notebooks to coordinate the attack. They didn't share their tactics with their companions since they all had different abilities.

Noah gazed at the region. It didn't look any different from any other land. A few trees occupied the area, and the sky shone brightly on the azure ground. Yet, on the other side, countless magical beasts remained hidden, waiting for targets to arrive.

"I'm ready," Jordan said.

"Me too," Don added.

"Don't cause a mess," King Elbas reminded them.

"Let's go," Noah gave the order, and the four entered the region while keeping the auras and minds condensed inside their figures.

Noah didn't dare to run there. He could feel the frailty of the fabric of space as he walked on the azure ground. Something told him that he could break it if he released even more of his physical power.

'How can we even fight here?' Noah wondered as he warned his companions not to come out of his separate space.

His companions always flew out of his chest to help him when he was in a dire situation, but he couldn't allow them to do that in that environment. If they ended up in the void, he didn't have the power to retrieve them.

King Elbas had advised the group to remain in the peripheral areas of the region and wait for the arrival of those creatures. That was the safest approach in that situation. Noah and the others would have a chance to escape without destroying the area in the process.

Don, Jordan, and Noah followed his advice and walked for a few hundred meters before stopping. Small bits of their auras leaked into the environment. They seeped on the other side through the cracks that opened due to their pressure. They were acting as baits for the creatures in the void.

The inhabitants of the Void Zone weren't smart, but any magical beast in the divine ranks would have a decent amount of intelligence. The tentacle creatures didn't attack immediately, but Noah and the others remained in their position and let their hunger grow.

It was only a matter of time. Those beasts would eventually fall prey to their instincts and attack the group, giving them a chance to fight back.

Signs of instability slowly began to appear in the sky. Space bent as if something was moving under it.

Noah saw wave-like tremors spreading from under the fabric of the sky and nearing him slowly. He couldn't understand how many creatures had come for him from that position, but he let them prepare their assault.

Then, multiple black tentacles pierced the fabric of the sky and stretched toward Noah. Fissures opened from the spots where they passed, and a faint pulling force enveloped the area.

Noah let the tentacles reach him and restrain his figure. Those limbs felt cold at the touch, but they were soft. Their flexibility mixed with their toughness perfectly and made them threatening enemies.

The tentacles tried to pull Noah toward the void, but nothing happened when they tensed. For some reason, Noah wouldn't move no matter how much strength they applied.