"Oh? What do we have here? A mere Foundation Realm pup was actually able to make it this far? How fascinating! Let's see, let's see… OH! How amazing! To have experienced so many reincarnations and so many tragedies, it's hard to say whether this little girl is lucky or unlucky! But one thing's for certain. She has unyielding willpower and pride to the point that she would rather die if she ever faced a situation where she was forced to admit defeat. How wonderful!! Finally! Someone worthy has shown up!!"
A deep, magnetic, powerful, and demonic voice reverberated through the void. This voice shook Mira's entire existence and it was to the point where even if her soul was on the brink of destruction, her mind was in shambles, and her body was torn apart, she was forced to regain consciousness strictly from the power emanating from that voice.
*Snap*
The entity who just spoke snapped its fingers and Mira's nonexistent body, shredded soul, and consumed mind instantly healed up to her peak state.
Right now, Mira was feeling very confused. At one point, all she saw was black and endless pain as she tried to hold on, but now she was perfectly fine like nothing happened. She quickly scanned her body and immediately noticed there were no injuries in or on her body at all! In fact, it seemed like her body evolved slightly and her bone structure readjusted itself slightly to accommodate her fighting style better.
However, Mira knew something wasn't right when not too long ago she felt her entire existence shudder. It felt like something terrified not only her present self but also her past and future selves as well.
She raised her guard to the absolute maximum and started searching the surrounding area, but almost immediately she found the root of her fear and anxiety.
What she saw made her blood turn cold and even with her years of experience, she still couldn't help herself from freezing up and her mouth hanging wide open.
Standing in front of her was a… man? Let's go with a man. He was over 3 meters tall and at first glance, he was extremely handsome. He was wearing an all-black suit with a black tie, but even this couldn't hide the rippling muscles underneath. His body was perfectly proportioned even with his massive size. His face was angular, symmetrical, and sharp. Mira could only describe it as perfect. However, his skin was extremely pale, to the point that it was almost see-through.
Yet his eyes, hair, and forehead stood out the most to her. His eyes were entirely black. Blacker than even the deepest darkest pits in the abyss. His pupils were also unique as his left pupil was in the shape of a scythe and his right pupil had the shape of something Mira thought she'd never see again. It was in the shape of an Ankh; A symbol that represented life. Meanwhile, in between his brows was the tattoo of a skull and crossbones.
The man also had hair that for some reason seemed infinitely long yet infinitely short, almost as though they contained a universe within each strand of hair.
But what made Mira's blood run cold is the man's aura. Just looking at him almost directly sent her into a cycle of Samsara, of death and rebirth. It made her feel like she was looking at a forbidden existence…
"Are you done checking me out? You should at least introduce yourself first. However, seeing as how this is probably the first time you've ever met someone as great as me, I'll let you off for now. I can't tell you my name as just my name alone might wipe out your existence from the annals of history. For now, just call me "The Guardian". Yeah, that sounds good."
'The Guardian' tried to ease the situation with a light joke and a smile, but Mira wasn't buying it and just continued to stare at him silently. In truth, she had no idea what to say yet at the same time she had so much to say. Why was she here? Did she fail? Did she pass? Is this hell? Or worse? Who the fuck are you? Why are you even here, in a place that was located in some low-leveled area in a Mortal Cultivation Realm? Isn't this… I don't know… a bit below your paygrade?
Naturally, 'The Guardian' could see through her thoughts without even trying and was a bit amused. In the entirety of his everlasting life, it's been a long, long time since anyone has not only been so calm in front of him but even questioned him. He was also 90% sure that the little girl in front of him most likely knew he could read her mind or at least know what she was thinking based on her expressions.
But this only increased his impression of her instead of diminishing it as even among people of his caliber… okay, maybe not quite his caliber, but maybe a few notches under him, it'd be hard to find someone as smart and quick-witted as the child in front of her. Although she kept guessing his identity and some of what she said was wrong, she understood almost everything she needed to understand in just a few sentences.
Mira knew that this man was far from simple and it only made sense for someone like this to have some sort of connection to the trials and tribulations she just faced. From his voice alone, Mira gathered that this man was definitely an Immortal, and a strong one at that. She wasn't sure how strong since he could be doing something to make his voice appear stronger or maybe it was just an innate ability of his. Next is the name 'The Guardian'. It only makes sense that he's associated with whatever being or treasure is located at the end of all these tests.
Maybe he's actually the Spirit of the treasure that has the ability to transform into a human-like appearance. Or maybe he truly is a Guardian of some sort.
Nevertheless, whatever is at the end of these tests has to be something or someone beyond her wildest imagination if such a being like the entity in front of her is related to it.
'The Guardian' smile grew as he read Mira's thoughts and his impression of her was constantly rising. It's already good enough that she hasn't lost her mind in his presence, but she can even make such deductions with not only limited information but also doing so even in the face of absolute power.
After coming to several conclusions and doing a few calculations along with seeing the happy expression on the 'Guardian's' face, Mira felt it was in her best interest to speak up.
"My name is Mira, Mister Guardian. I'm normally not one to make any sort of small talk so I apologize if I offend you in some way, but I doubt someone of your stature would get upset at a little girl like me so I'll get straight to the point. What's going to happen to me now that I'm here?"
Mira tried to talk to him with as much respect as possible, but Mira… just couldn't bring herself to be any nicer than that. She's never once feared the strong, so why would she do so now that she's in front of someone who is so much stronger than her that his mere name can erase her existence? She's always been a little girl, an ant to the truly powerful. Now she's just an even smaller ant, in front of an even bigger dragon. There isn't really much of a difference.
That being the case, she also felt like someone of this level of strength wouldn't get offended by something so trivial. Hell, even Mira doesn't give two shits what some mortal without any cultivation thinks or says about her.
Of course, Mira still tried to choose her words as carefully as possible. She wanted to ask why she was here and who he was or perhaps what she's been fighting and getting tortured for, but in the end none of that really mattered right now. What truly mattered is whether she was about to end up as a mindless beast tortured for eternity, or if she is going to live and perhaps even get her hands on that treasure she's been working so hard for.
