Chapter 497 Did I do something wrong?
Six months later, after Nine stole the contracts from the demon's planet, within a vast, freely floating horizontal land that extended far enough to encompass a massive area within the universe.
The land had been enveloped in a thick layer of divine and spiritual energy from the moment it came into existence. That is why it exuded a sense of divinity and carried the scent of numerous ancient tombs filled with treasures hidden beneath its surface. Despite all this, there is a lack of mana in and around the sacred divine land.
It was also renowned as the land of spirituality because it housed countless mystical spirits. These ethereal beings were small winged creatures without physical bodies, existing solely as souls. The spirits emitted a tremendous amount of spiritual energy, which is why the divine land excluded a lot of spiritual energy. However, unfortunately, only those who are close to nature or can communicate with these small winged beings can sense and harness the spiritual energy.
But... at this moment, a portion of the sacred divine land's surface was releasing a dense miasma of dark energy that was slowly but surely eroding the divine and spiritual essence in the air. The darkness was also corrupting the many mystical spirits who were trying their best to find safety in the ancient tombs to get away from the repulsive energy.
Inside the sacred land, far from the darkness, where the air was still filled with a soothing melody and the atmosphere was clean, calm, and serene. Surrounded by many lush green trees atop a boulder in the middle of a lake, a beautiful woman with long dark blue hair cascading down her back was sitting on her heels.
The white robe enveloping her figure was cinched at the waist with a lovely sash intricately embroidered with flowers.
She extended her hands with a radiant smile as she glanced at the small winged creature wholly made of light, hovering just a short distance away from her above the calm surface of the lake.
"Come here..."
Then she opened her mouth and said in a sweet voice that echoed in the silent space. The spirit hesitated but slowly flapped its wings to edge closer to the beautiful woman with sea-blue eyes.
In the meantime, a bit farther from the lake, nestled among the trees, behind a few large boulders that seemed out of place, almost as if they were deliberately positioned there to conceal the group of individuals secretly observing the woman who was trying her best to rope a mystical spirit.
A white-haired old man seated among the group placed his finger on his lips to hush the excited individuals around him with a solemn expression.
"Shhh! The spirit will run away if there's even a little noise, so be quiet."
Almost everyone obediently nodded their heads at Susan and silently moved further back away from the boulders. They all hoped for Mia to be successful.
In that way, she would finally become the first person in their group who would be able to converse with a spirit.
This would benefit all of them as well because with a mystical spirit by their side, they would easily be able to locate another ancient tomb filled with treasures hidden beneath the sacred land.
Carcel tousled his golden hair and offered a subtle smile as he looked at the blue-haired woman in the distance who was trying her best to connect with the spirit.
"She's doing great."
He turned to the dark-haired dwarf next to him and posed a question that lingered in everyone's mind.
"Will she be able to sense spiritual energy once she befriends the spirit?"
Yon chuckled softly when he noticed the many pairs of eyes gazing at him with curiosity. It had been over a year and a half since they all arrived in the Sacred Divine Land. He and Susan followed the kids, Susan because the old man wanted to find Kyle, and he because, unlike the other guardians of the Tower of Opportunity who had chosen to pursue their own paths by remaining on the blue planet or leaving to enhance their strength elsewhere, he had nothing planned for his future.
However, the dwarf did desire to achieve the transcendent rank one day. That's why the sacred divine land was also the ideal place for him, just like it was for the youngsters.
"Well, befriending spirits to gain an advantage in locating the ancient tombs is quite different from sensing spiritual energy. So, I'm certain it would depend on Mia's ability to comprehend. After all, except Regius and Alec, none of you can sense spiritual energy yet, not even me."
Carcel nodded and glanced at the blue-haired man seated behind him before looking at the green-haired man. He clicked his tongue when he noticed a smug expression on Regius's face.
Sinon held onto his wings tightly and released a dejected sigh. His wings and horns had started to turn completely silver the more his strength increased, adorned with golden patterns that now stretched across their entire surface.
"I wonder... when will I be able to sense spiritual energy? I thought demi-humans are closer to nature compared to others, but it seems nature doesn't favor me as I am not handsome enough-!"
He hissed when Regius smacked his head and hushed him to stay quiet because the spirit was just an inch away from Mia's hands. Sinon glared at the green-haired elven man and closed his mouth.
Lara chuckled softly at their actions. She was wearing a robe similar to Mia's, but her orange hair was tied in a high ponytail, with a few strands cascading to frame her face.
All of a sudden, the whole group cried out when a loud, elderly voice echoed behind them, and the spirit's form scattered into numerous particles that floated in the air within Mia's grasp.
"What are you all doing?"
Susan and Yon whipped their heads around with deadly serious expressions to gaze at the floating old dwarf, who had disappeared who knows where a week ago, only to disrupt such an important moment.
Zron scratched his chin in confusion when he noticed everyone glaring at him.
"Hmm, did I do something wrong?"