Ryu's eyes narrowed when he heard Sarriel's words.
Tri Palace wasn't its name? How ironic. Just this past day he was certain that it was, even to the point of looking down on other small worlds for not being aware of this. Yet, it turned out that his own Ice Phoenix Clan also made this mistake?
Beyond this, the matter of the invitation truly caught Ryu off guard. This invitation… Ryu was fairly certain of how those who received it were chosen. However, this didn't matter much to him. What did matter, though, was exactly who was sending it.
And unfortunately… Ryu couldn't think of any existence capable of having such a large reach.
"And it's true name?" Ryu asked.
"… The Nether Palace."
Ryu's pupils constricted.
To understand why this was so important, it was important to understand the origin of the Tri Palace name to begin with.
After grasping that the Tri Palace was an existence that seemed to balance the three planes – The Real Plane, The Nether Plane, and the Ethereal Plane – the moniker of Tri Palace was chosen.
This might sound odd. After all, if it was already related to the Nether Realm in such a way, it shouldn't be so surprising that it had a connection and could even teleport people to it.
However, this conclusion misses an important point, the point of culture.
Within the world of cultivation, the unity of the three Planes wasn't just about their physical representation themselves. Rather, it meant all sorts of things. They could represent past, present and future. They could represent Yin, Yang and Order. They could also represent life, death and rebirth.
From Ryu's studies, the number of Ruins, treasures, Legacy Worlds, and beyond that he had run into using these exact same concepts were too numerous to count. Even though the Tri Palace seemed to be a small bit special, that was all.
To the Ice Phoenix Clan of the past, the Tri Palace was still just a small blip. The only reason Ryu had come to it was for a small chance at maybe finding a clue to a Summoner Necromancers Legacy. That was all… a small chance.
Ryu knew that the Tri Palace had never been explored thoroughly, and he also knew that he just might have the talent needed to cross those final barriers. However, it had always been just a chance he was taking, realizing that even if he was wrong, he would still get the experience, strength boost, and potentially some decent treasures out of it.
But this name… Its true name represented something completely different, especially if it was hidden behind the Tri Palace name to begin with.
Ryu didn't believe that his Ice Phoenix Clan made a mistake. Rather, they were correct… but only at that given time.
As important as names were, their change was even more important and represented something just that bit more meaningful.
For a name to stake its origin using the cycle and unity of the Three Planes… But to then change their name to the Nether Palace directly represented something so profound that Ryu had to take a pause.
'The ambition of this person, this Clan or this Sect… Is not small…'
The one surpassing the three. Death trumping life and reincarnation. The Nether Realm above all.
The conclusion beat like a drum in Ryu's mind.
Sarriel's silence seemed to say that she had come to understand this as well. But, she couldn't fathom who would have such great ambition. No… It was more accurate to ask who was powerful enough to be worthy of such ambition, and what would someone so powerful want with a group of brats like them?
"And why is it that you haven't stepped into the Path Extinction Realm?" Ryu asked his final question.
"The invitation stated that to earn the highest prize, one could only be below this Realm…" Sarriel said softly.
She found it hard to trust these people as well. However, much like Ryu, she was willing to weather any danger for the sake of improving herself and seeking revenge for her family one day.
This also made perfect sense. The Path Extinction Realm was like a dividing line that separated Immortal experts. Usually, if one wanted someone to take on their mantle, the Immortal Ring Realm was the absolute limit of what you would accept due to the special nature of the Path Extinction Realm.
Ryu nodded. 'So things are like this.'
Many thoughts swirled around Ryu's mind. The best he could think of was that these matters were related to the most supreme creatures of the Nether Realm, existences that even Sky Gods feared… Some of which had existed since the dawn of life and death…
'Is this another cataclysmic event? A true cataclysm?'
As a historian, Ryu was well aware of the pattern of Eras. Each Era ended with a Plane changing and molding event to usher in the new.
The transition between the Golden Era and the Martial Era was the first Era where such a cataclysmic event did not occur. Though the destruction of the Tatsuya Clan was world changing to them and Ryu, other than shocking the Planes, there wasn't much of another shift at all…
So what if this was the real event…? The event that was meant to bring the Golden Era to an end?
Somehow, though, Ryu still felt like he was missing something…
"Nemesis."
"~Nie! Nie!~"
Ryu leapt upward, landing on Nemesis' back to Sarriel's confusion. They were within the Keep, why was he doing this? It was already odd enough to allow a beast into such a place to begin with.
"Stay here and rest." Ryu said. "You need to recover as quickly as possible, I don't think that this city will fall so easily. I could sense an odd atmosphere in the crowd from earlier, I wouldn't be surprised if they have another powerhouse coming. But, I don't believe it will be much of a problem for you to deal with as long as you recover first.
"Oh, and also, let Niel in. There's no need for him to die out there. He'll probably be their first target."
"But… Where are you going?"
"Me? I'm going to conquer this Keep."
After saying these words, Ryu suddenly vanished.