"What did you say?" Celeste protested as she got up from where she was sitting and came to the side of the bars of that cell, right in front of Minos.
"Why do you look offended? Did I tell a lie?" Minos asked with a smile on his face as he stared at that woman.
"Bastard! You're so brave to say this because I have my cultivation sealed in this place. If not for that, I would teach you a lesson!" She told him this as she used both her hands to grip the bars of her cell.
At the same time, Neal was impressed by young Stuart's words. That's because even though it was the truth, and there was no need to talk about such things, this young prisoner saw a side of Minos he didn't know.
Minos had always been a reclusive person who behaved with etiquette in the days of the spiritual academy, avoiding talking more than necessary. But here he was, despising the behavior of a regional specialist, someone who had already reached the middle of the 6th stage.
And that was what surprised Neal since Minos' comment didn't bother him. He had betrayed his wife with her mother.. That was a fact. It wasn't something he was proud of, but he wasn't ashamed either...
So, he wasn't offended by Minos' words, as Celeste seemed to be.
And finally, after hearing that woman's protest, Minos smiled at her and said calmly. "Even if you were free and used all your powers, you still wouldn't be able to punish me, hehehe."
"What are you saying?" She asked, gritting her teeth in anger.
"I'm saying I'm stronger than you!"
She then looked at him and softened her expression by smiling as if looking at a fool. "Impossible! A junior of the younger generation, my daughter's age, can't be stronger than me!"
"Do you want to bet?" Minos provoked her.
He was saying this because he knew the arrogance of the regional Spiritual Kings, especially those who were more than halfway to the end of the 6th stage of cultivation.
Each of them thought they were outstanding and only accepted to hear the word of those stronger than they were.
And precisely for that reason, Minos wanted to show this woman who is in charge of the Dry City to avoid any future problems.
She had to know fully that everything in this place followed young Stuart's orders and that her level wouldn't make her beyond local rules.
Even if she had to live with her cultivation sealed for a while, it would be better if she feared Minos early on and didn't show her arrogance towards the locals.
Nobles had the bad habit of behaving like sheep in front of sovereigns, who were usually stronger than they. At the same time, they turned into real wolves when it came to ordinary citizens, people weaker than themselves.
But Minos didn't want that kind of trouble in his town, as it would only slow down the progress of the Black Plain.
Anyway, he had come to this place to fight this woman and show her just how standard his power was.
Hell, Minos wasn't even 20-years-old yet and had already reached a fighting proficiency that should be greater than that of this woman!
"Do you want to fight me?" She asked with a sly smile at the corner of her mouth. "And what are you going to bet? Our freedoms?"
"Hmm, that could be it. If you beat me, I'll let you leave or live in this town without my interference, as long as you follow local rules. However, if I win, you will have to lower your arrogance and accept that you are just an ordinary person, with a decent level for this region."
"And to prove it, you will work in the agricultural fields of the city until a medium-level grade-2 spiritual judge comes to the Dry City to sign our Soul Contract."
He then looked into her eyes and asked. "Do you dare accept this challenge?"
Hearing this, Celeste can't help but feel a shiver down her spine, as if there's something wrong here. However, her reason said something else. After all, there was no way Minos could beat her, considering past events and his young age.
'He was in a coma for six years and is the same age as Neal... Even if this place receives outside support, it would be impossible for him to be stronger than Neal in just over four years of cultivation!'
'There's no way he can beat me with his strength, he must be at most at level 40, and that doesn't present the slightest challenge to me…' She pondered for a moment. 'Does he want to use some dirty scheme on me?'
"What guarantee do I have that you won't cheat?" She asked.
"I will only use my weapon. Other than that, no spiritual array, nor other weapons, nor artifacts of any kind will be used in this fight."
Meanwhile, Neal watched all this from the side, wide-eyed, trying to understand why Minos wanted to fight Celeste. 'What is this nonsense? Does he know the terror level 54 Spiritual Kings can offer?'
"Minos, you are underestimating Celeste. She's not someone that people of our age can fight." Neal protested, trying to convince his old acquaintance not to get a good spanking from his mate.
And upon hearing that, Celeste immediately looked at Neal with a look of disapproval, as if she were asking him to shut up.
Minos then said calmly. "Don't worry, even if I'm not strong enough to kill a Spiritual King like her, defeating her is within my means."
"Hahaha, good. You truly have a lot of courage. And then? How do we do it?" Celeste asked excitedly, feeling there was no way this young man could win.
"Let's go somewhere else, and then I'll let you recover your energy so we can fight..."
After that, Minos talked a little more with those two people until finally they got out of that prison and went towards the training field in the local police headquarters.
This place had nothing to draw attention to, other than being utterly identical to the fighting stage at army headquarters.
And arriving at the center of that stage, Minos soon ordered some soldiers to free those two and give them space to recover their energy.
'Let's see what it's like to fight a level 54, Spiritual King, who this time is full of energy and who probably has a full set of Black-grade techniques…' Minos pondered inwardly, watching that mature woman from afar.
He didn't think fighting this woman would be any more complex than fighting Emlyn, but he was still excited about it. That's because the way of battle spiritual beasts was very different from that of humans, which could bring many surprises in a fight.
And for a person who wanted to be able to fight all possible opponents, it was very positive for Minos to face individuals of different abilities, fighting styles, levels, etc.
His knowledge of Henricus Longus's memoirs was excellent, but that was just theory. If he didn't experiment in practice, he could never know exactly his limits and the best ways to improve himself!
Anyway, after some time, those two people had recovered from the exhaustion of spiritual energy, and Celeste was ready to fight.
'Let me see what level you're at for being this arrogant…' She thought about it, with a slight smile at the corner of her lips at the same time Neal thought of something similar.
However, shortly after doing this, sounds of saliva being swallowed sounded through that place, coming from those two people.
"Level 48?" Neal yelled in shock as he glanced in Minos' direction and then looked at Celeste in doubt. He wanted to know if that was the reality or if he was hallucinating.
But he soon realized that he hadn't been mistaken, since his partner was as scared as he was...
