Baruch Rising_Book 3 of the Coiling Dragon Saga

by Wo Chi Xi Hong Shi

  The top of the mountain had an open space that was a few dozen meters wide. There were some stunted dwarf trees at the top of the mountain as well as some wild grass. Next to one of the old dwarf trees, there were two stone houses.

  And at the top of the mountain, there was a man standing there, staring downwards.

  Linley carefully looked at this man. He was dressed in a simple blue robe. He was rather skinny, but his back was ramrod straight. His short hair was only three inches, and it was also blue. Just by looking at him, one could sense that this man was possessed of a valiant, resolute air.

  “Senior apprentice-brother,” Castro called out respectfully.

  The blue-haired man turned to look at them. When his gaze landed on Linley, Linley suddenly sensed his own soul seem to tremble from the gaze.

  Was this an attack?!

  Linley instantly grew frightened. He was certain that against ordinary warriors, most likely the gaze alone of this senior apprentice-brother could destroy their soul. Fortunately, he himself possessed the spiritual energy of an Arch Magus of the ninth rank.

  “Not bad.” The man smiled and nodded. “You are Linley?”

  “I am.” Linley nodded as well.

  “My name is Fain.” The man smiled. “Master instructed me to come welcome you. You drank dragon’s blood in order to gain the ability to transform, I believe. You aren’t a pure Dragonblood Warrior, right?”

  “Hrm?” Linley frowned.

  “After hearing about your Dragonform’s appearance, I deduced this. I’ve met other Dragonblood Warriors of your Baruch clan,” Fain said with a calm laugh.

  “So what if I did drink dragon’s blood?” Linley responded.

  The eldest disciple, Fain, sighed with emotion. “Based on what I know, the Pure Dragonblood Warriors have tremendous potential, while the Variant Dragonblood Warriors who drank dragon’s blood have slightly less potential. If you were a Pure Dragonblood Warrior, upon reaching the peak of your power, you would probably be able to do battle with me.”

  “Even the potential of a Variant Dragonblood Warrior most likely is greater than yours.” Linley was very unhappy with the way this ‘eldest disciple’ was speaking.

  Fain frowned.

  He was a person of great status. Even the so-called ‘most powerful Saint’ in the world, the Monolithic Sword Saint, Haydson, was nothing more than a junior in Fain’s eyes, not even worthy of his attention. He truly was rather dissatisfied with the way Linley had just spoken to him.

  But when he thought of the instructions the War God had given him, Fain simply smiled, no longer allowing himself to be angry.

  “Indeed. Supreme Warriors, even non-pure ones, still have higher potential than normal people.” Fain smiled, then glanced at the nearby Castro. “Apprentice-brother, you can go back now. For now, I will attend to Linley.”

  “Yes, senior apprentice-brother,” Castro said very respectfully. He then looked at Linley meaningfully, signaling with his eyes for Linley to not be too arrogant. He then left the mountain.

  Linley took a deep breath. He, too, understood that here at the War God’s College, it was best to be a bit more humble.

  “Linley, let’s sit down and chat.” With a wave of his hand, Fain caused two nearby wooden seats to fly over towards them, landing in front of himself and Linley.

  Seeing this, Linley was extremely puzzled.

  What technique had Fain used just now? Linley hadn’t sensed him using any battle-qi.

  “I hear that you refused Lord Hodan?” Fain laughed. Even Fain was extremely respectful towards Hodan. Hodan was, after all, a Deity-level expert.

  “Indeed.” Linley nodded.

  “Wise.” Fain laughed. “Linley, we should feel very lucky to have been born here in the Yulan continent.”

  “Oh?” Linley was somewhat confused.

  Fain continued, “Many Saints have already been famous for centuries and have enjoyed all there is to enjoy. Most of their family members have died of old age. Without anything tying them down emotionally, a large number of them have gone to the Higher Planes.”

  Linley nodded. He understood this.

  Eventually, one would grow weary of what the material plane had to offer. After the passage of centuries, all family members who had not reached the Saint level would have died long ago. It was very normal for them to eventually decide to go to the Higher Planes.

  “But what those people do not understand is that many of the experts of the Higher Planes wish they could come here to the plane of the Yulan continent.” A hint of a smile was at the corner of Fain’s lips. “Linley, five thousand years ago, many experts from different planes descended to the Yulan continent. Do you know of this affair?”

  “I’ve heard of it.” Linley nodded.

  “I didn’t expect you to know about this.” Fain nodded. “Those countless experts all came to the Yulan continent. Naturally, it was because there was something about this plane that attracted them.”

  Fain shook his head and sighed. “But many Saints instead choose to run off to the Higher Planes, where experts are as common as the clouds. They give up what is close to them for something far away.”

  “Linley, let me just tell you this. Don’t be in a hurry to go to the Higher Planes. Stay here. Eventually, you’ll know what huge benefits this plane has to offer. As for what secrets lie hidden within the Yulan continent, for now, I cannot tell you,” Fain said with a laugh.

  Linley looked at Fain questioningly. “Why tell me this?”

  Many Saints didn’t know about this. Why had Fain decided to tell him?

  “Master instructed me to,” Fain said.

  “The War God?” Linley truly didn’t understand it.

  This was the second time the War God had assisted him. The first time, he had ordered Emperor Johann to choose Wharton, while this time, he had Fain tell him these secrets.

  Fain suddenly said, “Linley, I hear you are quite powerful. Let’s spar together. What do you say?”

  Linley’s eyes lit up. He immediately nodded.

  To train with someone on the level of Fain would definitely be beneficial. With a flip of his hand, Linley retrieved his Bloodviolet flexible sword. Leaping backwards, he retreated at high speed, while at the same time, those black scales covered his body, and those sharp, ferocious spikes appeared as well.

  Staring at Linley’s cold, remorseless dark golden eyes, Fain sighed in praise. “This Variant Dragonform of yours seems to be quite special. Come. Are you ready?”

  Linley was already chanting the words to the Windshadow spell.

  “Ready.” Linley nodded.

  Looking at Linley, Fain recalled his master’s instructions. He couldn’t help but let out a resigned sigh. The reason he actively asked Linley to spar was also at the behest of the War God.

  According to the War God, it was time to let Linley have an idea as to how powerful the true experts of the continent were.

  “Linley, I am extremely fast. Be careful,” Fain said with a smile. In fact, Linley had chosen to use Bloodviolet precisely because he had heard that Fain was fast.

  Bloodviolet could reach an astonishing level of speed when used correctly.

  “Let’s begin.” Fain’s eyes lit up.

  “Swish!” An azure light suddenly flowed out from Fain’s body, so powerful that it crackled and popped.

  Fain suddenly moved.

  Linley only felt an azure bolt of lightning suddenly streak towards him, at least twice as fast as Olivier’s top speed. This terrifying speed rendered Linley completely unable to dodge.

  “How frightening!”

  Linley leapt backwards while hurriedly transforming Bloodviolet into a tornado of movement, creating countless flashes of violet light that attacked that azure bolt of lightning.

  Profound Truths of the Wind – Rippling Wind!

  Linley didn’t dare to use any other techniques. If he were to use the ‘Tempos of the Wind’ instead, he probably wouldn’t even be able to
touch his opponent. Only by using this extremely fast technique could he just barely defend himself.

  “Bam!” A terrifying force struck onto the tip of Bloodviolet.

  And then, Linley could clearly sense that azure bolt of lightning seem to be transmitted through Bloodviolet towards him, striking onto his black scales.

  “Bang!”

  It was as though a heavy warhammer had struck Linley’s soul. Linley flew upwards, then immediately collapsed onto the floor, his entire body trembling as that azure lightning continued to ripple across Linley’s body.

  His entire body felt paralyzed. Linley could sense that his muscles had lost all power, and he was barely able to remain conscious.

  After a long period of time, Linley finally regained full consciousness, and his four limbs and his muscles slowly gained strength as well. Only now did Linley stand up, staring at Fain with disbelief.

  When he had dueled with Olivier, Linley had believed himself to be a peak-stage Saint, which meant that there should be very few people in the continent capable of defeating him.

  But now, after sparring with Fain, he realized that the difference between himself and Fain was extremely vast.

  Fain was twice as fast as him. Although that didn’t sound like much, when engaging in a battle of speed, even a tiny advantage in speed meant the faster party held an advantage. Twice as fast… this was an unbridgeable gap.

  There was no way for him to counterattack.

  What’s more, that lightning-attack had stunned his very soul. Fain had actually held back from using his full power as he had not wished to injure Linley.

  “What, you can’t believe it?” Fain sat back down on his wooden chair, laughing.

  Linley’s mind was in a state of chaos. “Although I knew that you are strong, Mr. Fain, I didn’t expect… I couldn’t resist at all. Mr. Fain, have you reached the Deity level?”

  “No. I’m still just a peak-stage Saint.” Fain shook his head.

  “I’m also a peak-stage Saint. But…” Linley couldn’t understand.

  Laughing, Fain looked at Linley, then sighed with emotion. “Linley, don’t be fooled by the four words, ‘peak-stage Saint-level’. In the eyes of experts such as us, the so-called ‘peak-stage’ doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is how much and how well you understand the Laws.”

  “If you understand just the tiniest bit of the Laws, then you are a ‘peak-stage’ Saint in the eyes of ordinary people,” Fain said disdainfully.

  Linley was startled.

  Right. That was indeed the case. When Linley’s proficiency with the sword had reached the ‘impose’ level, that was merely borrowing the ‘imposing force’ of the heavens and the earth. It didn’t have anything to do with the Laws.

  But the techniques he had developed based on the Profound Truths of the Earth and the two techniques he had developed based on the Profound Truths of the Wind, the Rippling Wind and Tempos of the Wind techniques, were indeed based on what he himself knew was but a tiny bit of understanding of the Laws.

  “According to what Master says, the Elemental Laws are as vast and boundless as the seas. If you’ve understood a single drop of water in those seas, you are a peak-stage Saint. If you’ve understood a hundred drops of water, you are still a peak-stage Saint. But there is a huge difference between the two!”

  A hint of loneliness could be seen on Fain’s face. “The Elemental Laws truly are vast and boundless. Supposedly, only after mastering 1% of a Law can one reach the Demigod stage.”

  “As for you and Olivier, you haven’t even mastered 0.01%.” Fain laughed as he glanced at Linley. “Tell me. Although both of you have gained some insights, can your insights compare with the likes of those of us who have been training for thousands of years?”

  Linley understood.

  No matter how much of a genius he was, he had spent less than ten years meditating on the Elemental Laws.

  And Fain? He had been doing the same for thousands of years. Even if Fain wasn’t as talented as him, how could his understanding of the Laws be lower than Linley’s?

  “Linley, most of the famous Saints in the world, such as that ‘Monolithic Sword Saint’ Haydson, all became famous in the past millennium. Those true experts who have been training for thousands of years are all far past the point of caring about worldly fame. All of them are meditating and training in private.”

  Linley was stunned.

  The Monolithic Sword Saint had the reputation of being the most powerful Saint, after all.

  “Those lists and rankings that you might have heard about are nothing more than the experts that most people of the continent know about. Do you know how powerful the experts you are unaware of are? All of the lucky survivors of those battles from five thousand years ago have been in training in secret since then. I refuse to believe that they would be willing to leave the plane of the Yulan continent.” A hint of a smile was on Fain’s face.

  22

  The War God’s Summons

  After saying these words, Fain turned and walked to the edge of the peak, allowing the wind to buffet his long robes. As for Linley, he continued to sit there, digesting what he had just learned.

  From the Planar Overseer, Hodan, Linley had learned that upon reaching the Saint level, one could leave the plane of the Yulan continent.

  From Fain, Linley had learned that the Yulan continent’s plane contained a major secret. The descent of those experts from other planes five thousand years ago was also related to this mystery.

  Actually, it was already quite incredible that Linley had reached his current level at the tender age of twenty-seven. After all, those extremely powerful experts who were training in secret here in the Yulan continent had all been training for countless years.

  “Whew.” Linley let out a long breath.

  “Why worry about so much? As long as my little brother and I are happy, and as long as I can exterminate the Radiant Church to avenge my parents, I should feel satisfied.”

  Linley’s current goals required that he reach a certain level of power.

  As for Linley himself, he truly enjoyed the path of training.

  The path of training was filled with obstacles, treacherous cliffs, and dangers. Many powerful people had lost their lives on this path. How few would actually reach the pinnacle?

  In the entire Yulan continent, there were only six Deities.

  Ever since embarking on this path, Linley’s goal was to stand at the very pinnacle of the Yulan continent. When he had embarked on this path as a youth, Linley had mentally prepared himself for the possibility of death and failure.

  “When I was six, because I was unable to train in Dragonblood battle-qi, my dream was to become a warrior of the seventh or eighth ranks. Afterwards, I not only became a Dragonblood Warrior, I also became the genius magus of the Holy Union.”

  “When I was young, I dreamed of eventually reaching the Saint level. And now, I have become a peak-stage Saint.”

  A hint of a smile was on Linley’s lips.

  He had confidence.

  “Fain? In the not-too-distant future, I will defeat him as well.” Linley felt full of excitement. The more experts he surpassed and the greater the heights he achieved, the more satisfied he felt.

  What truly moved a person wasn’t the results he gained, but the overcoming of setbacks and breakthroughs that one made on the path to success.

  Fain turned his head, looking at Linley.

  “Rest here for now. At nightfall, I will take you to see Master.” Fain smiled.

  “The War God?” Linley frowned.

  The War God wanted to personally meet with him?

  “Naturally, Master has something he wishes to discuss with you. Just train here quietly for now. If there is anything you need, you can ask me.” Fain didn’t want to waste any more time on Linley. He walked to a stone that had already been polished smooth by him sitting on it countless times. Seating himself in the meditative stance, he closed his eyes. />
  Linley stared at the meditating Fain.

  “What exactly does the War God want?” Linley didn’t think about it for too long, as he also sat down and began to quietly meditate.

  Time passed. In the blink of an eye, the sun had set.

  Fain had been quietly meditating on the boulder. Suddenly, his body began to turn blurry, then disappeared from atop the boulder and reappeared next to it.

  Seeing that Linley had been quietly meditating this entire time, Fain couldn’t help but secretly nod.

  True experts had to learn how to endure solitude.

  For example, Olivier had quietly meditated by himself atop that desolate mountain for three full years. Linley, in turn, had spent three painstaking years training in the Mountain Range of Magical Beasts. If one couldn’t endure solitude, one’s level of talent wouldn’t make a difference.

  “Linley, it is about time. Come with me to meet Master.” Fain smiled.

  Linley opened his eyes as well, and immediately followed Fain.

  Fain walked to the side of the peak, and then began to fly downwards. Although Linley wasn’t able to fly in human form, Linley leapt off the peak as well, allowing himself to gracefully drift downwards.

  Based on his mastery of the wind, Linley could slow down the rate of his descent.

  Soon, Fain landed at the half-way point down the mountain, and Linley landed as well.

  “Come in with me.” Fain headed straight for a natural tunnel. Linley felt rather puzzled. The War God actually lived in a tunnel?

  The tunnel curved left and right. After a long time, it ended in that deep, bottomless pit. Looking down into it, nothing but darkness could be seen.

  “Let’s go down.” Fain jumped down directly, and Linley followed him.

  “Whoosh.” “Whoosh.”

  The two fell down at high speed. Linley was secretly shocked. “We’ve definitely fallen for at least two thousand meters. We’re below the ground level by now.”

  After falling for a long period of time, Fain and Linley gracefully floated to the ground.

  And then, Linley followed Fain as they continued to move through the tunnel, but as they did, the tunnel’s temperature grew higher and higher.