A scorched land covered the distance.

Massive craters of varying sizes littered the ground.

The once dangerous yet beautiful landscape had been turned into a region of destruction.

A stifling air pervaded the area.

However, the silence was soon broken by a soft voice brimming with power:

"Why?"

There was a short moment of silence before a different voice that didn't fall short of the beautiful female voice resounded:

"I had to."

Zara gazed at the monstrous beast kneeling before her with a complicated expression.

Not only had he stopped the meteors outside the range of her domain from colliding with the ground, but in their final clash, for some reason unknown, he had thrown his axe far into the distance, causing him to receive the full brunt of her attack without any measure of defense.

Tron who had deep gashes in different parts of his body, dyeing his white fur red, couldn't help but flash her a grin, "Even if I hadn't retracted my attack, I would still have lost."

Tron could still feel the terrifying power behind Zara's attack, and he knew deep down, that he didn't have anything within his arsenal to defend against it.

It was just that even though he would have lost, he wouldn't have been put in such a helpless situation.

However, he didn't regret his decision.

After several weeks, he finally heard that otherworldly voice ring inside his head, asking him for help.

Without any hesitation, he threw his axe powered with all his might in the direction the voice had requested.

He was happy to be able to repay his debt, even though it wasn't in full.

The contented expression slowly disappeared from Tron's face, and what took its place was an unyielding look as he continued in a deep voice:

"But I am sorry. In the end, my pride wouldn't allow me to serve you, especially when I know that my previous master hasn't abandoned me."

The complicated look on Zara's face slowly disappeared to be replaced by her usual indifference.

Raising her bronze hammer lightly, she looked at Tron with cold eyes, "It's a shame. But I can't allow you to live."

Tron looked at her intently for a moment before finally lowering his head.

Just when Zara was about to swing her hammer, a cold voice stopped her in place.

"Wait..."

Furrowing her eyebrows, Zara looked at the approaching Steven with a questioning look. She would have ignored him entirely even after knowing his status. It was just that the fact that he remained behind even after the ground shook and the fourth zone opened, earned her respect.

Eleanor and Landon had left for a while after all, yet he remained with her, only because of their newly formed partnership.

Arriving at her side, Steven raised his sword to block Zara's hammer, causing the light crease on her face to slowly change into a displeased frown.

However, Steven's next words caused her frown to disappear and her eyes to widen.

"Now, I understand why that person told you to come to the secret realm. The person you are searching for isn't me, but I assure you that you won't be disappointed."

Steven smiled at her before he shifted his eyes to the kneeling Tron:

"You might just want to release him."

"Why?" the frown returned to Zara's face. She repressed her curiosity of finding out about this person's identity and voiced her opposition. She didn't really want to let such a loose end live. After clashing with Tron, she was fully aware of his terrifying potential that he was yet to tap into.

Steven didn't seem to care about how she felt as he voiced out in a cold voice, "I don't know why, but I am sure this beast is connected to this person you so want to meet."

A few minutes earlier, his line of sight had followed the direction Tron had thrown his eyes. After enhancing his eyesight with not only his mana but also his killing intent, he was able to see what happened tens of kilometers away.

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What he saw made him gasp and also made a seed of gratitude towards Tron sprout within him. After all, he had saved his Juniors, Tina and Miller.

A feeling of anger soon welled up within him, but after seeing the golden-haired boy whom he was very familiar with, his mind went blank.

He didn't believe his eyes as he watched the firebird carry them further away into the third zone. But it was then that something clicked within his mind.

He didn't believe he was the person Zara was looking for, after all, even though he was 60% confident, he couldn't guarantee his victory against her.

But if It was Arlo?

'He is more than capable.'

A myriad of emotions flashed on Zara's face.

In the end, she sighed, before lowering her hammer.

At the same time.

Arlo and the others arrived at the lake separating the third zone from the treasure zone. They could see several figures hidden within the magical mist covering the lake.

And unlike before, they could see the opposite ends of the lake, as it was far smaller in size, barely covering three kilometers or so.

Without any hesitation, the group entered the lake in silence.

The feeling of brushing with death sent chills down the spine of even great geniuses like them, and even Arlo who was already secretly alerted beforehand by Rose wasn't an exception. All of them ignored the trembling Joe who retreated to one side on Anita's back with a look of shame and self-reproach on his face.

Not to mention that they weren't sure whether Rook was dead and even if he was, his team was still alive. So they were pressed for time and didn't have the luxury of diverting their attention.

Anita retreated into her seal, and like this Arlo and his group commenced their last but also life-changing mind trial in the secret realm.

With Arlo's group included, approximately sixty figures were currently on the lake, undergoing individual trials, which if they were to fail would spell their death.

The majority of those present were humans, as most of them were led safely by Theodore and his group, who lowered their heads and avoided any form of trouble, as they prioritized arriving quickly at the treasure zone. The only obstacle they met on their paths were the fierce spiritual beasts that had been commanded by Tron to kill all outsiders they encountered. But in the face of Theodore's strength and their group's number, they all fell. In fact, Theodore and his group were the first to arrive at the lake and commence the trial, so they had a heart start compared to the others. Of course, whether they finish first or not fully depended on the difficulty of the test they would face, and their abilities.

After a few more figures, Eleanor in the company of Landon also entered the lake, with the hope that their team would catch up to them.

About fifteen minutes after Arlo and his group started their trials, the magical beast group led by a wounded Rook also appeared at the scene. A scary light shone within his eyes, and a dangerous aura surrounded him, causing even his team and his cousins to shiver in fear.

With a hate-filled gaze directed at no specific direction in the lake, Rook took a deep breath before stepping forward.

The usually noisy third zone populated by terrifying beasts was now enveloped in an eerie silence, a stark contrast to its previous state.

......

Unlike before when the pitch black snake had used some unknown methods to make Joe bypass the mind trial, this time Joe found himself within a dark space.

Soon after, the darkness started receding from around him, and what he saw made the emotions he had been bottling within himself these past three days burst out.

"Father..." he barely choked out as his eyes erupted in tears.

Against his will, Joe was forced to watch the scene that played before his eyes in a third-person view.

.....

The Lunar World.

This world was very popular among the countless stars that filled the universe.

The main reason is that it was ruled by one of the two strongest races in existence who followed a matriarchal system of succession the werewolves.

However, things changed a few decades ago, when an unknown race, never seen or heard of before suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

With inhuman speed and strength, and terrifying reflexes, with many more supernatural abilities, this new race was able to climb the ranks quickly, before clashing head with head with the ruling werewolves.

And caught in the cross of the clash were the unfortunate magical beasts.

Unlike other spiritual beasts, they were able to take the form of a human and establish several civilizations.

But these civilizations soon faced a threat when the war began between vampires and werewolves.

Thankfully, within these perilous times, a prince among the Royal Basilisk family rose and grew in fame. He became renowned for his terrifying battle prowess that could compare favorably with the top masters of the vampires and werewolves and it was even said that he had been acknowledged by the great rulers of the two races. Under his leadership, the magical beasts were able to stand firmly and survive the great war.

The Royal Baseliks were well known for their lecherous behaviors, as they even slept with magical beasts of other races without any care for the bastards they might sire. Their only preoccupation was to satisfy their innate lust.

However, the hero was an exception.

Among the princes of the royal family, he was known to never have had any intimate relationship with any female, and it was not until he was crowned a king that he had a wife.

The queen loved him so much and took pleasure and pride in being the only woman in his eyes. She gave him three children, the first being a prince and the other two, princesses.

One day, the young king heard the news of outsiders, people who didn't belong to the Lunar world, appearing in one of the cities and causing the death of thousands of beasts. They decimated every warrior sent after them and caused fear to slowly spread among his people.

Left with no choice, the young king embarked on his own and took matters into his own hands.

It was then it happened.

The young king encountered a young woman who seemed to be chased by the beings causing mayhem in his cities.

The young king who had never been moved by beauty finally became enamored by a female.

His heart finally skipped a beat after meeting the human girl, who had an appearance he had never seen before.

She was a vision of ethereal beauty, with cascading long white hair that flowed like silk, framing her delicate features. Her eyes, a mesmerizing shade of matching white, held a depth and intensity that seemed to draw the king into another world.

*Ba-dum!* *Ba-dum!* *Ba-dum!*

Joe's young heart beat fiercely against his rib cage when his eyes fell upon the unfamiliar woman, who for some strange reason felt familiar to him.