Shen went through a dark stone portal and randomly emerged on one of the few dozen metal arrival platforms floating above the fighting ring.
At first glance, the Arena below looked like any other massive circular raised platform surrounded by auditorium-disposed spectator benches, except for its size and materials. The platform was about five miles long and made of B+ stone blocks resembling "inverted" galaxies: dark spots glowed and moved slowly like nebulas on a white light background. A transparent dome surrounded it, meant to protect the people outside from anything happening inside. It didn't block one's senses, though, which was how Shen could tell what that Arena was.
The Gardener Sect's Arena was a place of Death.
Shen's senses screamed at him about all the Death that place had and invited. The air was full of Life Laws, the most in any place Shen had visited. But the stone blocks felt like pure Death Laws made manifest. Shen guessed the material they were made of would've killed him, a C-rank, at a single touch before they were processed and turned into the blocks.
Even processed, they infected the air inside the dome with enough intensity for Shen's Killing Weapon to flare in recognition and fierceness—and his Law didn't even belong to the Axioms of Death! Entering that place meant fighting to kill. That was the Arena's purpose. Only the ring's enchantments would prevent a lethal strike from ending someone's life.
There were enough benches around it for a whole lot of people, but only a few tens of thousands were present, making it less than a tenth full. Almost everyone wore vests that looked like superimposed pieces of clothes, plus the Gardener Sect's enamel pin. Shen doubted all those people came from a single World Tree Branch. They were coming from the entire Myriad Worlds to see the duel—or rather, the spear.
The few dozen non-sect members were all B-ranks. Evidently, being present to see the spear was a big honor that not every B-rank in the Myriad Worlds was deserving of. Shen hated their presence here. He doubted he could disguise himself enough to avoid their senses in the future now that they would feel him personally.
T'onir was already in the ring, clad in C+ black and silvery armor. Unlike E'lemer, he also wore a helmet, and only his six wings were unprotected. His Path's three Laws came from the Axioms of Staff, Life, and Death, and he wielded a B- staff. It was made of green wood with gray stripes.
If Shen's Law of Killing Weapon had flared when he felt the air of Death in the Arena, T'onir's Law of Death was like a beacon of lethal intent. His armor supposedly hid his Path from any onlooker, yet his Law of Death shone through it. He was there to do his best to kill his foe.
"Whenever you're ready," E'lemer said as he teleported beside Shen.
Enough people were already looking up that many had located Shen and were pointing his way, but the spatial commotion caused by the teleportation made everyone look. There were no A-ranks among the audience, but Shen felt at least seven Realizations quickly scan him before retracting. They were watching.
Shen's only worry was that E'livia wasn't with the man. He silently prayed to the Heavens for her to keep her mouth shut. It also only made it more urgent for him to swiftly defeat T'onir.
He nodded to E'lemer, said, "I'll be quick," and descended into the Arena. The transparent dome didn't block his passage. He barely even felt it, almost like touching a soap bubble.
Getting into the Death-filled atmosphere from the Life-filled one, however, was most noticeable.
Shen wondered if that was how dying felt like. Something inside him told him that was a stupid thought. Still, the contrast between all the potential of Life outside and the eerie, final, and desolate Death inside would've dazed him if he hadn't felt it from a distance before. Even then, feeling it in his soul was like jumping into the middle of an iceberg after bathing in lava. He even got a migraine for a few seconds as his True Center adapted to the environment.
T'onir faced Shen as he descended. As soon as the drow's feet touched the ground, the holin turned to the audience and yelled, "I am Onir, of the Rael line, of T'holin blood."
People were discussing things outside, but the buzz died when he spoke. If Shen had understood the meaning of T'onir's words, the guy was T'rael's descendant. Yet, the B-rank had helped Shen after E'vania got involved. If E'lemer's previous actions hadn't been enough to show it, it became evident to Shen that the E'holin bloodline had a lot of pull in the Gardener Sect.
T'onir continued, "Today, I ask forgiveness of all who respect Elder E'vania. May no one find fault with me, for this is an Honor Duel agreed upon before my opponent was gifted Un'Re. I wouldn't have accepted if I had known about it."
The audience nodded in agreement with the statement. Either the spear was even bigger of a deal than E'lemer had explained, or the respect E'vania commanded was that massive—or a mix of both.
Still, what surprised Shen the most was that T'onir's declaration felt genuine. Shen couldn't feel T'onir's soul through the armor, but his words and posture seemed honest. That was slightly strange, considering what E'vania had said about ignoring one's bloodline's instincts. How could he not protect the E'holin bloodline if it was the object of his instincts?
His following words answered that. "As soon as the news reached me, I shared my willingness to forfeit the Duel with Elder E'lemer. He has rejected my intentions. According to him, the E'holin bloodline is currently neutral about this challenge. To the E'holin, Elder E'vania's favor is only as relevant to this situation as Elder E'lemer's desire for an Honor Duel; thus, they cancel each other. As such, I'm about to follow the rules and fight my best. As such, I shall dim the brilliance of a masterpiece crafted by Elder E'vania. Forgive me." He bowed.
More people nodded, and many shouted approving words at the guy, though Shen couldn't understand the language. More importantly, Shen still couldn't find E'livia and was getting more worried by the second. He didn't dare to hurry T'onir, though. This was obviously important to the sect, and he didn't want to attract even more of the wrong kind of interest than he already had.
Fortunately, after a few silent moments, T'onir just turned to look at Shen and remained quiet.
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Shen got the cue and yelled to the audience, "I'm Shen. Elder E'vania has graced me with Un'Re. I'll show you all that she knew what she was doing. So, forgive me for dimming the brilliance of T'onir's speech by making him a liar before all of you." He turned back to E'tonir, smiled provocatively for a few seconds, but then wiped it off his face and cupped his fists before himself. "Your speech was good, though. I don't understand your culture much, but I can see you're an honorable man in your own way. I respect that."
T'onir's Law of Death flared even harder at Shen's taunt, but he still didn't show emotion as he cupped his hands before himself and replied, "I can't say I see the same, Outsider, but I respect Elder E'vania's wisdom and want to learn what she saw in you."
Shen smiled. He could almost like the guy.
"Prepare yourselves," E'lemer shouted above.
T'onir flew backward to a corner of the ring, and Shen mirrored the movement. Both stared at each other. Shen couldn't see the guy's qi but moved his own qi in his body in preparation for the upcoming fight.
"Begin," E'lemer commanded, and the two fighters obeyed.
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"I wish she was here to see this," an old dwarf in blacksmith's clothes said as he smoked his pipe. He was pure muscle, his beard was long and grey, and his hair was thin and white.
The Gardener turned to look from the lake to the newcomer with a frown. "V'moria. You defeated my formations again."
"A lucky trick," the dwarf said with a smile as he approached the lake. An anvil materialized beside the rock upon which the Gardener was sitting, and he sat on it. "She should be here to see it," he repeated.
"Don't you know how to forge chairs?" the Gardener asked, pointedly ignoring the question again.
V'moria understood the S-rank's intentions by ignoring E'vania's subject and decided not to test his patience—for now. Instead, he looked at the lake.
The S-rank natural wonder made it easier for any A-rank looking at it to pierce some of the veils the Gardener had set up around each of the Myriad Worlds. It would let the dwarf watch the fight without anyone knowing he was doing it from afar. It would be his reward for breaking through the Gardener's defenses once again, which would let the S-rank improve his craft. It was an old game of theirs, despite the Gardener pretending to dislike it for some reason. V'moria couldn't get the guy's sense of humor.
V'moria answered the question about chairs, "I can't waste time with chairs until I beat my rival." He still tangentially mentioned E'vania. That was his purpose for coming here, after all.
"You do remember you can command Reality itself to form a chair for you? Perhaps your decaying memory is why you can't catch up to her," the Gardener teased as he also turned to look at the lake.
"Is that how she forged the Un'Re?" the dwarf ventured. "By bending Reality? Is that the secret of the Oneness?"
"Maybe," the Gardener replied with a smile. "I can tell you if you agree to attempt to Elevate your Realization into a Law."
V'moria harumphed. "If she figured out the trick as an A-rank, I can do it as well. My Realization can accept nothing else, even if I turn it into a Law first. You know that."
"Do I?" the Gardener asked half-playfully.
It had been a while since the guy started prodding V'moria into the possibility of his Path not breaking if he Ascended before becoming the best crafter he knew. V'moria didn't trust it. He knew his Realization better than anyone. He had to be the best creator of anything he loved to make, and weapons were a part of it. He could accept nothing else. He couldn't progress otherwise.
Thus, he had looked for other people interested in helping him. His Descent was almost ready. It would give him access to different tools and materials, the likes of which E'vania could only dream of.
He only had to ensure she didn't reach S-rank first. And for that, he had to know exactly where she had gone to. He couldn't have her simply ignore their rivalry and reach S-rank like he knew she had gone to do. She had to wait to be humiliated for him first. His Path demanded it. He couldn't beat an S-rank, so he had to stop her.
"The Outsider looks a lot like Darla, doesn't he?" the dwarf prodded.
"Are you trying to buy information with your silence?" the Gardener asked, surprised.
V'moria himself was almost surprised he had had the guts to speak those words, but this was a time for desperate measures. He had worked hard to receive the same status as the holins, but it had led him nowhere. The secret of the Oneness wasn't at the hidden places at the top of the World Tree. Wherever E'vania had learned to do it, it hadn't been in the Myriad Worlds.
She couldn't reach S-rank before he found the answer! She couldn't!
His True Path wanted to tremble, but V'moria controlled it tightly to keep the Gardener from noticing.
Calmly, he replied, "I'm just saying I was visiting a business partner in the Abyss when I felt a familiar presence by the Gates. The wrong Gates than the ones we're supposed to protect. I'm saying that the sooner I figure some things out with our missing Elder E'vania, the sooner I can visit those Gates myself and Elevate my Path. I need to talk to her."
The Gardener shook his head with a sad smile. "You were ever too stupid to figure out the truth of Oneness by yourself and too stupid to betray me without showing any signs. I could've ignored your conversations in the Abyss a bit longer in exchange for your crafting skills, but it's different when you admit to it yourself while trying to blackmail me, isn't it? Not after so many Void Insertion Points were located near places you visit often. Not after I discovered they were hidden by incredible formations mixing qi, Abyssal Energy, and Void Energy. Not after you've revealed such mastery over formations. You've sealed your fate."
The dwarf still controlled his reactions. Enough B-ranks could fight against an A-rank, but only S-ranks could resist S-ranks. He hadn't brought his only S-tier relic to ensure this conversation would look like the harmless mistake of a desperate fool. It wasn't working.
"Milord, you are—" he started but was frozen by Reality's Laws.
V'moria could resist something at this level, but it would start a fight he wasn't ready for. He started stealthily summoning his S-tier relic.
"I hate pruning my garden the most, especially when the weeds are so few and so harmless," the Gardener said while standing up and making his fishing rod disappear. "You see, your actions are irrelevant. The Void can't succeed in the World Tree. Not ever. No matter how much it tries. And the Abyss..." the Gardener sighed. "Their strongest rulers are old allies of mine, you stupid, idiotic fool. They help me locate the weeds hidden deep within the hearts of those I want to trust the most."
He turned to the dwarf while extending his arm sideways. An S-tier twig of the World Tree grew from the grassy ground, turning into a simple-looking wooden axe that felt like the most divine of objects. The twig's roots dried, releasing the weapon, which flew until its handle reached the Gardener's hand.
The S-rank continued, "Your mistake was trying to profit from the interaction between a Child of Chaos and a Child of Order. Until E'vania succeeds in this Refinement Tribulation forced on her by the Heavens' periodic jealousy of Children of Order, the ripples she causes will demand that Order be maintained or restored in her area of influence. She and O'blon conceived E'lemer in this very place. I arranged the meeting. If I ignore your betrayal after you hinted so strongly at it—or worse, help you—it'll negatively affect her Ascension. I can't have that at such a critical moment. And before I kill your A-rank accomplice and thirteen B-rank servants, I'll let them know you're the reason I acted." He lazily swung his axe against V'moria. "Die."
V'moria didn't have the time to get shocked at the Gardener knowing everyone he was plotting with—and even convincing those few people had taken hundreds of years. That damn sect knew how to brainwash everyone.
His S-tier spherical metal relic materialized in his hand, and he activated it right before the axe's edge cut his soul off.
Reality twisted, and a fight broke out at the highest point of the World Tree while almost everyone else watched a much less relevant one at the 108th Middle Branch.