A moment after Heinz saw the siblings disappear into that dot of light, he turned around and adopted a battle position. The energy inside the Cultivator's body was ready to react to the presence he detected approaching his location.
However, he relaxed in the next second when he noticed Gabriel's figure. The Second Prince analyzed Heinz's condition, and once he saw his injuries weren't life-threatening, he spoke.
"We can rest now. There is a limit to the things powerhouses are willing to turn a blind eye to."
Heinz nodded when he heard Gabriel's words. The Sacred Forest was a special location, and only those who were ready to take the Holy Trial were allowed to enter.
The moment Sigrid and Aren touched the northern lights, they passed from being Eye Holders with Emperor bloodlines to challengers of the Holy Trial. Any interference with their trial would be an insult to the Holy Mother, and not even the Holy Clan dared to do that.
Their enemies will have to wait until the siblings finish the Holy Trial, and even then, if Sigrid and Aren manage to obtain a high Tier of completion, they would draw the attention of the powerhouses of the dynasty, and their status would change.
Heinz's eyes narrowed after he noticed Gabriel's pale complexion and saw how blood was falling from his left arm. The Second Prince's blood was blue, and each drop was incredibly dense. You could see craters being formed in the ground where the drops landed.
The blood did not remain for too long on the earth, as it vanished after a couple of seconds. One small magic creature that was near the landing area licked the blood before it disappeared. Immediately after that, the magic creature that looked like a rat jumped from Rank 0 to Rank 1, and his power continued to grow. Unfortunately for the creature, he wasn't able to handle such a pure type of energy, and his body swelled before exploding.
The Cultivator did not have time to bother with such a scene as he realized the significance of Gabriel's injuries. Heinz thought he had reached this place without the need to ask for the Second Prince's help, but it was clear Gabriel fought, and the most meaningful thing was that he did not even realize when it happened.
'The person Gabriel faced must have been powerful enough to hide from my consciousness, so he should have been able to take me by surprise.' Heinz just shook his head as he realized how close he had been to dying and focused on the Sacred Forest.
............
The amorphous entity composed of tentacles made of boiling asphalt was standing a couple of meters away from the Crystal Wall of a massive world.
His power was too great to cross the Crystal Wall of a Middle World. If he attempted to enter through a portal, the World Consciousness would detect him immediately and discharged a furious attack against him before he could even try to conceal his power.
Slowly the entity started to change its form, and as it did that, its power began to decrease. Finally, it took the appearance of a tall and slim human being. He wore a black suit and had a grey mask that covered his entire face.
The man waved his hand and made golden chains appear that began to rotate around him. The next second he clenched his fist, making one end of the chains pierce his body while the other fused with the space around them.
The tall man began to blend with space until they were practically the same. His presence was concealed to the point that even the consciousness of a Soul Law Domain existence could not detect him.
After making sure all the preparations were done, the man marched to the Crystal Wall. Despite all the things he had done, he still felt as if he was walking through an incredibly thick substance and advanced very slowly.
..........
Zatiel was working on the runic inscription when he received a message, and a smile appeared on his face. Gabriel had used the small tablet to inform him that Sigrid and Aren had started the Holy Trial.
'One less thing to worry about, now I only need to finish the key.' Zatiel did not slow down once he knew about the progress of the Eye Holders. He continued to work on the runic formation with all of his energy.
The days passed, and more runic formations were being completed before disappearing into the continent.
Finally, after more than two years of sacrifice and unimaginable torture, Zatiel and Zitra appeared at the location where the final runic formation would be inscribed.
Thrill could be seen in the Neo-Demon's eyes. All the pain and tiredness disappeared, and the only thing that remained was a level of excitement like the one he had not felt in a very long time.
'Once I finish this, I will finally be able to start to increase my domain in the universe and continue the task I started on Baator and the Abyss.'
Zatiel did not waste time and began to work in the runic formation. This one was different from the others. Although the complexity was the same, the size was almost ten times greater, so even with the Neo-Demon impressive speed, it would take a while.
He was forced to stop several times due to the waves of pain, but despite that, Zatiel advanced very fast. The tendrils of blood moved so quickly that they were invisible to the naked eye and displayed an unbelievable level of dexterity.
Zatiel's speed was so impressive that before the second day was over, he had almost finished. Just as he was inscribing the last part of the runic formation, the Neo-Demon's eyes widened.
The reason was not a wave of pain but the dark and dangerous force he felt affecting his mind, and that attempted to draw him into an illusion.
'I guess I was too slow.' Zatiel detected the origin of that force, and it was not targeting him directly, but the one captured by the Heavenly race.
The copy had been left unconscious after the attack on Saint City, so Zatiel was not able to obtain any information about what happened around him.
The force targeted the fragmented soul inside the copy, and it reached Zatiel's main soul due to their connection.
Despite the level of threat Zatiel felt from that dark force there was no panic or sense of urgency in his eyes. One of the reasons was that since his main soul was aware of the fact he was being pulled into an illusion, he would not confuse reality and fake.
The other reason was that although the Holy Trial was difficult, the time needed to finish it wasn't long, and once Sigrid and Aren changed their fate, the Sage would receive a terrible backlash, making it impossible for him to retain Zatiel.
'If my calculations are right, the siblings will be finishing the anytime now. Although my soul is weak, the power he can express inside the Beta Heavenly World can't be above Rank 4, so I can forcefully resist any attempt to take control of my soul as long as my will remains strong. I will probably be thrown into a hellish landscape, but it doesn't matter." Zatiel's eyes burned with the will to fight.
Zatiel's confidence in his abilities to resist wasn't due to ego. Trying to control or even manipulate the soul of another person was very difficult, especially for those with a strong will. If the Sage was able to use the power of a Rank 6 life form, then even with Zatiel's immense fortitude, there was no way he could resist. Luckily in the Beta Heavenly World, no matter how special the spell the Sage used, it would be powered by the force of a Rank 4 life form.
There was also the fact that Zatiel knew that no matter how horrible were the things he would see, they could not shake his resolution. Even if he witnessed all the ones he had come to love and care for dying horribly, he was sure he could still move forward.
Without being able to resist, Zatiel's consciousness was pulled into a dream. The Neo-Demon's mind was calm, and his heart firm. He was ready to face any torment or nightmare that would be thrown on his way.
But the hell he expected did not appear. In front of him was a small garden in the backyard of a house.
Zatiel's eyes widened, and his entire body froze. Even the battle in the last circle of Baator could not affect him as much as the scene in front of him. He knew everything was false, but there was a power trying to erase that thought from his mind. The moment he no longer fought back, he would forget everything and accept this dream as a reality.
