It really was a different world above the cloud layer.
Instead of continuing into a peak, Skyrend Mountain expanded outward again, almost as if forming a secondary base.
Above the cloud layer was essentially a second mountain stacked on top of the first, a little over 500 kilometers tall.
Rushing through the cloud layer meant two things.
Firstly, the suppressive force in the air calmed to the point of being mostly bearable, and the atmosphere of the Ascension Ceremony went through a total change.
Because there were several opportunities present on the slope of this more expansive part of Skyrend Mountain, the rapid sprint to the top halted here.
From here, what mattered was how high one could get, not how quickly one did it.
Because even if one took months to do it, making it to the peak was an absolute achievement!
The cloud layer was inhabited by the strongest beasts in the entire sub-universe, and none of them were willing to easily give up their spots at the top.
If one wanted to get past them, they'd either need to fight or pass a test, neither of which was an easy thing to do!
One had to be far more careful after reaching this point.
Any mistakes could lead to failure which meant certain death.
There were plenty of beasts who ascended past the cloud layer years ago yet were still challenging their way up its side.
In a sense, it could be said that the Ascension Ceremony never ended in this area.
Whoosh!
Zara pushed up the slopes and did donuts around her pursuers, evening her flight path to match the slope's angle.
Damien and the rest wanted to take a moment to admire the scenery, but they didn't have the time!
"The Blessing Shrine is not far from here. It's best for us to take the rest of the journey on the ground," Sia said, spreading her mana to reinforce Zara's barrier.
Damien nodded, patting Zara's back and transmitting the order.
His eyes never left the three beasts that still hadn't dropped their pursuit.
'From the looks of it, they also know about the Blessing Shrine. I'm not sure exactly what it is, but with a name like that, it has to be a benefit.'
"Good, let's land. Everyone, get ready for combat!"
Fighting from Zara's back was difficult because their mobility was limited, and their current abilities didn't allow them to fly freely at such an altitude.
Perhaps they'd be disadvantaged facing flying beasts on the ground, but it wouldn't be as much of a disadvantage as what they were currently facing.
After all, all of them had extreme control over their mana.
Boom!
Zara's paws heavily landed on the ground.
Damien and his group jumped off, and she didn't waste time to get back in the air.
She didn't mind carrying them, but objectively, they were a burden.
Without having to worry about their safety, she could maneuver as freely as she wished!
"Fat bird, you're dead!"
She gnashed her teeth and shot through the air like a comet on a straight path towards the fat bird.
It was the most annoying of the bunch and the one that she wanted to kill the most!
Her mana flared, blackness filling the blue sky.
The fat bird didn't know what hit it.
Zara turned into a beam of light and arrived behind it in an instant, slashing her claws without mercy.
Shing!
The sound was like a sword cutting the wind. Blood spurted out of the bird's back, and it screeched in pain, turning to her in anger.
Their battle began there, a battle of speed versus strength.
The fat bird's strength was what caused Zara the most trouble on the ascent here. If it wasn't for that bird, the other two wouldn't have been able to harm her.
It was their fault she couldn't get rid of it then, but she could trust that they couldn't interfere in this battle.
She was determined to torture this bird to death!
Meanwhile, Damien and the girls retrieved their weapons and occupied the other two, making sure they couldn't interrupt her battle.
The Darklight Raven was also a beast of extreme speed and had an ability similar to teleportation. If it was able to learn its element properly, it likely would've had power similar to Zara in her early years.
The Sword Hawk, on the other hand, had feathers as sharp as blades, which it used as projectiles to pierce its target.
The Darklight Raven took the forefront, using its speed to harass its enemies and agitate their emotions. It moved using the strangest patterns, making it almost impossible to hit.
The Sword Hawk was more astounding, though, as it was able to fire its feathers with such precision that they never interrupted the raven's path!
Damien and the girls took their battle formation.
Damien used Freya and Hel for crowd control and Rose also helped him from the back. Their role was similar to the raven, but their firepower far surpassed it.
Ruyue and Elena were in charge of attacking. Beams of light and icicles lined with dark evil energy filled the sky with explosions, limiting the area the beasts could occupy.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
'Nice. The mechanics of this realm make this a lot easier.' Damien thought to himself as he fulfilled his role.
'It feels strange not fighting at the front, but this has its own charms.'
He'd forgotten in the heat of the moment, but there were very strict restrictions on the altitude a beast could fly at in this sub-universe.
They had plenty of horizontal space now that they'd ascended to this part of the mountain, but they couldn't move up out of Damien's range!
His cover fire was extremely helpful for Ruyue and Elena.
They stood in the air, closing as much distance as possible without wasting mana.
'This power is not enough. I need to find the flexibility of yin.' Ruyue thought to herself.
Her attacks were far too rigid. The nature of ice did not bend for anyone, and death was inviolable. Power output couldn't help her in the current situation.
She didn't let up, but she divided her attention for one reason.
She was going to unlock her potential!
The main problem was that the beasts were more powerful than them.
They didn't reach the Ghost King's level, but they were definitely past the beginning of 3rd class.
Everyone in this group had killed people of this level when they were at the peak of 3rd class, but never did their opponent have the ability to outmaneuver them so swiftly.
It was a new challenge, but not an unwelcome one.
Because even in the Severed World, growth was possible.
As long as it remained within the bounds of 2nd class, one could absolutely grow their abilities.
This was part of the allure that drew so many experts here.
It was a place to strengthen one's foundation, to limit one's strength and gain a better understanding of their strength.
Perhaps this was a battle, but nobody in the group viewed it as life-threatening.
For them, this was just another opportunity to train, and a precursor to the reward they were soon to receive!
