Ishea held her breath, as she was prepared for the worst after Miko's insult. She had tried to placate the three unpredictable Bob's, but knew if they truly erupted with anger, she would have to sit back and watch the battle unfold.
The Bob closest to Miko stared at him with narrowed eyes, as if contemplating what to do. He started to walk over towards Miko, and arrived before him shortly after. He hulked over Miko, who was a full two feet shorter than the massive Supreme Battle Sect youths. However, Miko stared back with indifference, as if the gargantuan youth before him was of no concern.
Bob's hand stretched out before moving towards Miko, while the Faeries all held their breaths.
"Hahahaha, the Three Battle Bobs! I like it!" Bob exclaimed boisterously as he heavily patted Miko on the shoulder in a brotherly gesture. The two other Bobs also nodded their heads with satisfied expressions, clearly pleased with the nicknames as well.
"It seems you three have brains after all," Miko replied with a smug and proud smile on his face, while he puffed his chest out as well. Clearly, he was happy to be complimented for his nicknaming abilities.
Nearby, the Faeries stared at the four idiots before them with blank expressions, unable to keep up with the level of muscle headed stupidity they were witnessing.
Bob put his arm around Miko in a friendly manner, while the two started a boisterous discussion as they walked towards the temple entrance with the two other Bobs as well, as if the four had been lifelong friends all along. Miko gazed over his shoulder and gestured for the Faeries to follow, and the two groups quickly disappeared from sight as they stepped into the temple realm towards the danger within.
Thirty minutes later, another trio arrived at the top of the step, their awe-struck gazes inspecting the temple before them for a moment before becoming serious once more.
"Come on, let's not stand out here in the open," Iris said to Adam and Chase, the latter who joined their group just a day ago after running into them.
"You're right, we don't have any time to waste," Adam replied while nodding his head. "I won't rest until Kadin ceases to exist. Let's go."
The trio quickly entered the temple realm as well, disappearing in the guarding mist within the front entrance.
…
At the very far end of the temple realm, the ancient dragon corpse rested in eternal slumber. All that remained of the dragon was its bones, which were a brilliant shade of Jade, but even so the dragon was beyond awe-inspiring.
Getting to the end of the temple realm was quite an arduous task, requiring one to traverse dangerous lands and surpass perilous trials. Most of the youths that had entered the temple realm were still in the initial parts of the realm, and even the most talented of youths were still just barely halfway through.
As one got closer to the ancient dragon corpse, it became harder and harder to move as its mighty aura pressed down on all. The dragon corpse rested atop a massive platform dozens of miles wide; a platform that had a massive staircase leading up to it. The staircase itself was several miles wide, and made of golden material, making the platform look incredibly grand, as if it had been created for the sole purpose of being the dragon's eternal resting area.
At the base of the stairs stood a lone figure, a human youth with short black hair. His narrowed eyes stared up at the massive dragon corpse before him, a corpse which made him look even smaller than an ant.
His eyes ran up and down as he inspected the corpse, and eventually lingered on a bone that rested at the convergence point of the dragon's neck bones and ribs. When compared to the rest of the massive dragon, the bone was almost imperceptible. It was only two feet wide and one foot long, making it appear like a speck of dust on the dragon's corpse.
However, the bone was the deepest shade of Jade, and emanated the strongest aura of all.
"The Dragon-Essence Bone," Asuros muttered as he spotted what he had come for. He had been tasked by his master to obtain this bone at all costs, and this bone was the sole reason why the Asura creature had spent such an exorbitant number of resources to transport the other youths into the realm.
With the chaos they sowed within the realm, obtaining this bone would become easier for his disciple. He desired this bone above all else, and spared no cost to obtain it.
After inspecting the corpse for some time, Asuros stepped onto the first step leading up to the Dragon's corpse. The moment his foot touched the first step, he felt an invasive energy wash through his body. His movements paused for a moment while he inspected the energy within him, before a look of realization appeared on his face.
"So that's what this is all about," Asuros mused as he felt the energy focus on his muscles, bones, and specifically blood. "It's like the Talent Testing Steps, only these stairs test the power and purity of one's bloodline, and since this belonged to the ancient Jade Dragon Empire, I'm sure it tested the quality and purity of one's dragon blood."
A smug expression appeared on Asuros's face as he came to this realization.
"Hmph, I may not have any dragon blood in my veins, but what flows within is something even greater," he scoffed as he stepped forward once more, while the restrictive energy increased in power and profundity once more.
Asuros quickly made his way up the stairs, his initial progress incredibly swift but slowing as he progressed. Halfway up the stairs, his movement came to a halt as his face was red with strain. He continued to push forward, but was unable to do so.
"Tch," Asuros clicked his tongue in frustration as he moved backwards and returned to the base of the steps.
"While my blood is of a higher quality than even that of dragons, this test specifically tests for dragon blood talent. Those without dragon blood will find the test much harder to progress through it seems," Asuros mused as he thought over the issue.
"Fine, if I cannot ascend normally, then I'll just smash through it with overwhelming might!" Asuros scoffed as he sat down in a meditated position at the base of the steps. A massive sphere of human blood essence appeared in the air before him and hovered in place, held up by his QI. A smirk appeared on his face as he gazed at the sphere of blood, while it started to stream towards his lower stomach and disappear within his body.
"I'll ascend to the Dao Transformation Realm, obtain the Dragon-Essence Bone, and then slaughter all within, both friend and foe alike, absorbing each drop of blood along the way." Asuros mused to himself with a smug, expectant smile on his face. "This realm is turning out to be far better than I could ever have hoped for!"
