Chapter 621 So, this is the platform?
As Kyle stepped into the entrance, he sensed a peculiar force enveloping his body, and in the next second, he appeared in an old chamber cluttered with shattered furniture and bones, cloaked in dust.
The chamber's walls emitted a faint glow, casting a dim light across the space. Kyle surveyed his surroundings and saw Asher and the rest standing ahead of him, facing three open, shattered doors leading in various directions.
Asher gestured for everyone to enter the first opening and began moving.
"Don't worry about traps. I have already gone through this place a few times before. I disarmed all traps and even took apart the mechanical setup that triggers the trail inside this structure, so it's safe."
He chuckled with a sheepish expression.
"But there is a downside. There are no treasures left in this trial; I took everything. The only thing left inside this structure is the platform that can assist those at the top of the divine rank to reach the transcendent rank."
Kyle looked around at the walls as they passed through chamber after chamber, filled with smashed furniture and remains of undead creatures. He also spotted a couple of small human-sized shattered marble statues holding weapons like they were the protectors of this place.
He hummed and paused for a moment to touch the walls emitting a faint glow, trying to understand the source of their radiance. There must be something powering them. If Asher had already destroyed the trial, why were the walls still shining?
He sensed faint divine energy within the walls and nothing else, prompting him to trail behind the others. However, he couldn't help but ask the half-dragon.
"How many trials have you destroyed? I just hope you haven't ransacked everything in this tomb and taken all the treasures. It wouldn't bode well for us if that's the case."
Jian and the others turned their heads toward Asher, eager to learn the answer to Kyle's question. If the half-dragon had truly destroyed everything in this place, wouldn't their visit to this tomb be pointless?
Asher paused in his tracks as they approached a white gate within the chamber they had just entered.
"I have indeed spent a hundred years in this place, but there are many trials here that I couldn't even pass the first round of. Not to mention, this place is massive, nearly ten times the size of an average planet."
He shook his head with a wry smile.
"How could you expect me to explore every nook of this tomb and uncover every single treasure here? If that were possible, I would have ascended to the pinnacle of strength in this universe and obliterated this tomb myself to escape this confinement."
Asher pushed the white gate before him, and it creaked open slowly, sending dust swirling in every direction, revealing a vast expanse with a circular platform adorned with numerous symbols at its center.
He coughed from the dust, just like Jian, who was right behind him. Both his and the red-haired man's eyebrows twitched when they saw Kyle standing more than a meter away from the gate with Yue. It was clear the silver-haired man expected the dust to fly and made sure he and the elven woman beside him stayed clean.
Kyle gestured to clear the space ahead of him and advanced. Under the speechless gazes of Asher and Jian, he entered the gate with Yue and the two beasts.
"So, this is the platform?"
Asher straightened his clothes with a tsk and trailed behind the couple with Jian.
"Yeah, this is the platform. You simply sit on it, and pure spiritual energy will emanate from it, blended with another element. This energy will cleanse your mind, enabling you to enter an ethereal state where you can clear the universe test to advance to the transcendent rank."
Kyle nodded and climbed the dusty platform. The moment his feet touched the surface, it began emitting a calming energy. He gazed at the minuscule particles, a blend of pristine white with hints of gold and grey swirling around him. No doubt, it was spiritual energy, but it was intertwined with another aroma. His scent perception skill was active, so he easily distinguished what was blended with the spiritual energy. It was the fragrance of plants, or more precisely, herbs, perhaps of divine rank.
He glanced down at the platform as a realization struck him.
'There are divine rank herbs beneath this platform. Not lifeless but flourishing, and I'm certain it's an entire garden.'
Yue and Bia wanted to join Kyle on the platform as they, too, aimed to attain the transcendent rank. But Asher intervened and halted their advance.
"Just one person at a time, because when Kyle or any of you breaks through, the surge in power will impact the surroundings, including those around."
Kyle looked at the phoenix and the elven woman as they stepped back upon hearing the half-dragon's words.
"Any of you want to go first?"
Yue gestured for him to go first with a smile, and Bia simply ruffled her wings and sat down on Yue's shoulder to watch him.
-"Just proceed first now that you have ascended the platform."
Kyle nodded and quickly murmured a spell to clear the platform of dust before sitting cross-legged on it. The energy emanating from the platform began to swirl around his body. Jian, Asher, and Yue stepped back as the silver-haired man closed his eyes.
Nox, who had been floating nearby, suddenly noticed Jian moving to a corner and retrieving a communication crystal. He circled the red-haired man.
"What are you doing?"
Jian sighed. He was just a bit away from the peak of the divine rank. Therefore, he had decided to wait beside the platform and absorb divine energy for a few days to reach the peak and then climb the platform to reach the transcendent rank.
"I'm connecting everyone else through the communication crystal Zron provided us to notify them about the platform so they can also come here and utilize it to reach the transcendent rank. I just hope the crystal works here and they can find this place..."
Nox nodded and watched as the communication crystal in Jian's hands lit up, and the man sighed with relief upon hearing Yon's voice resonating from it.
Asher shot a speechless glance at the red-haired man standing in the distance, connecting others and informing them about the platform.
However, he decided to overlook it. Since the platform had no significance for him, it was alright for others to utilize it. In that moment, Yue inquired.
"How long will it take for Kyle to reach the transcendent rank?"
Asher pondered, tapping his chin thoughtfully.
"It all depends on how swiftly he can breach the barrier of divinity around his divine soul, achieve eternal status, and true immortality after passing the universe test. However, I reckon it will likely take at least a day-!"
His next words were caught in his throat as a cold, powerful aura surged out from Kyle's body, enveloping him entirely.
Asher looked down as the ground beneath him began to tremble. He exclaimed with shock and disbelief.
"What in the freakin' world!? It's barely been a minute, and he's already making a breakthrough!?"