Return of the Mythic Bloodline

"Whoah... so this is the world you always spoke of," Wukong gasped, his eyes scanning the green plains, the clean river flowing from the center, with villages settled along its banks. In the distance were high mountains, their peaks reaching into the clouds in the sky.

The river fell into the vast ocean behind them, merging with the Abyssal Sea.

"The scenery here isn’t as breathtaking as the Upper Realm, but it is still better than the Riftlands," Maximilian replied. The duo slowly flew on their swords high in the air. Just like Maximilian, Wukong had also transformed into human form after learning the technique Maximilian had taught him. Perhaps because he had learned the dragons’ devouring art, Wukong’s understanding of the dragon techniques had increased considerably. He mastered the transformation technique in less than two months.

In his human form, Wukong looked like a teenager. He had short auburn hair and deep black eyes. Like Maximilian, who had a mark on his forehead after the transformation, Wukong also had a limitation, a tail.

It was coiled around his waist, hidden beneath the cloth belt of his robe.

"This is the border of the Western Continent. Because of the low Soulforce presence, mostly mortals live here," Maximilian informed, looking at the mortals below, the children playing, the farmers working in the fields, and the women washing their clothes at the riverbank. "At least the war of cultivators didn’t affect the mortals."

"War?" Wukong asked, his brows rising.

Maximilian nodded. "For several decades, the humans and beasts have been engaged in a territorial war," Maximilian revealed, his tone serious. "Countless lives have already been lost."

"Brother, are we going to the location of the war?" Wukong asked, his lips rising in excitement. "The Death Energy from the freshly dead cultivators must be delicious."

"We are indeed going to the war’s location," Maximilian nodded. His eyes narrowed at Wukong as he continued, "but I suggest you not devour the Death Energy from the battlefield. It will be mixed with the resentment of the dead. It will do you more harm than good."

"O-oh, right. I understand," Wukong obliged.

They increased their pace, passing through the plains and reaching the lands of cultivators. The deeper they moved, the richer the natural Soulforce became. Wukong’s mouth remained wide open as he looked at the towering mountains and the flora-rich lands flourishing with energy. A massive protective array covered the mountains ahead.

With his Divine Sense, Maximilian saw more than a hundred human cultivators on the ground, walking towards the barrier.

Wukong and Maximilian landed on the ground a few kilometers away from the barrier. They had only taken a few steps when a male voice called out to them.

"Fellow Cultivator, are you also here to participate in the war?"

The duo turned, finding a group of cultivators. There were four men and one woman, all of them dressed in robes that were better than those worn by mortals but still below Maximilian’s standards, as he had literally lived in the most prestigious city of the world.

With just a single glance from his Divine Sense, Maximilian was able to determine their cultivation realms. Four of them were at the Early Stage of the Spirit Adept Realm, while the one in the middle, the one who had called out to Maximilian, was at the Middle Stage of the Spirit Adept Realm.

"My name is Mu Jin," the cultivator introduced himself before continuing, pointing towards his companions. "They are Su Jin, Gu Jin, Bu Jin, and Xiaoyan."

’Talk about lazy naming,’ Wukong scoffed inwardly, shaking his head.

"I’m Arthur," Maximilian introduced himself. "He is my cousin, Wukong. And yes, we are also here to participate in the war."

"Oh, great, Cultivator Arthur," Mu Jin nodded. "Do you mind traveling with us?"

"Yes, sure," Maximilian immediately agreed.

This was the exact moment Maximilian had been waiting for. He needed to find someone who could provide him with basic information about the current situation.

As they began walking, Maximilian said, "I will be honest with you. I have just come out after many years of closed-door cultivation, so I don’t really know much about the current situation. Would you like to share your knowledge?"

"Since you have accepted our invitation to travel together, I naturally will," Mu Jin replied in a respectful tone. "For years, both humans and beasts were stuck in a deadlock, with neither side gaining an advantage over the other. However, humans have recently gained a huge advantage in the war."

"Eh?" Maximilian raised an eyebrow curiously.

"The news is... the beasts fought amongst themselves because of some inner conflict. Several of their strong cultivators lost their lives. But the death that even shocked the humans was that of Battle God Aruma."

He waited for Maximilian to give a shocked reaction, but none came.

’Battle God Aruma...’ Maximilian murmured inwardly, the name sounding familiar. ’Oh, right. Vyaghra also mentioned that he respected Battle God Aruma, who was no more.’

"Could you tell me more about this Aruma?" Maximilian asked, causing the whole group to look at him in bewilderment.

"B-brother Arthur must really have been in close-door cultivation for quite a long time to not know about Battle God Aruma," Mu Jin murmured, shaking his head before explaining, "Battle God Aruma was arguably the most powerful warrior of the beast clans. Every time he entered the battlefield, the war turned into a struggle for survival for the humans. No one could match his might. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that he alone was holding more than half of the strength of the beast army. It took the War Marshal, who is at the Early Stage of the Demi-God Realm, five Generals at the Eternal Sage Realm, and nine commanders at the True Sage Realm to trick Battle God Aruma into an ambush. Even then, they only managed to sever one of his arms. Nevertheless, he never became weaker even after losing an arm. I still couldn’t understand what caused the beasts to fight someone of such importance and might that even humans respected and feared him."

He released a sigh, shaking his head.

"At the end, they are just animals, lacking common sense."

He moved closer to Maximilian and whispered, his tone turning excited, "Now that Battle God Aruma is gone, the beasts stand no chance. We are as good as won. That’s why so many rogue cultivators are joining the war as well, hoping to claim a share of the spoils."