The Progenitor of the Theos clan

Nathan flung his right hand at Shui, and the aura that covered that hand changed shape into a large claw that swiped at him. This attack could be considered a spell but was also far from it. In order to use the weakest of spells there were two main conditions: a soul comparable to one that had reached nebula one-star, and the average amount of energy of a cultivator in the first level in the Soul Realm. Shui had already passed the first condition but because of the second condition even if he forced himself to use a spell, it would quickly exhaust him despite the fact that he had more energy than an ordinary peak Mortal Realm practitioner. Additionally, there was no need since he could imitate the effect of spells with the symbols he had learnt.

Nathan was also not an exception to the rule so the claws that attacked Shui would quickly drain him. Due to this fact, it would be simple to just wait until he was exhausted, but Shui didn't choose to do that. He didn't know what Nathan might do when he was out of power, so he decided to quickly get him under control.

Shui easily evaded the first claw by dashing towards Nathan, and when the other claw rushed at him, he increased his speed and shifted to the right. After giving him the chance to attack him twice, Shui had gained enough time to close the distance between them. Since he knew the sinister aura would protect Nathan like the red tiger's aura did, he drew a symbol mentally while landing a palm strike on his chest.

'Seal.'

The effect of 'Seal' dispersed the aura around Nathan, but this was only a temporary solution. Shui was about pierce Nathan's abdomen with his right hand when, Nathan's body vanished in a burst of light.

"The winner has been decided. You may ascend."

At the moment when Shui was about to land the final attack, the voice claiming to be the progenitor sent Nathan out of the ancestral lands. Shui didn't know if this was because the one behind the voice didn't want to see his descendent be killed, or if he favoured someone who had practiced a demonic method but he gave up on trying to ask.

At the center of the platform, a pillar of golden light appeared. Since he was suspicious of this person, the pillar looked like a trap, but he had no choice but to enter it. After stepping into the light, his surroundings seemed to disappear in a flash before he found himself in an ancient structure above the clouds. If it wasn't for the barrier of clouds that surrounded this place in the distance, he wouldn't be sure that this was the peak of the mountain he was in. The structure had a simple construction. There were no walls, just a ceiling supported by pillars that stood on the polished floor. Considering the height of this structure, it was very dangerous since any careless accident could lead to him falling to his death.

At the centre of this structure was a white coffin that released an aura that tempted Shui to kneel. This was the first time he had come under such a pressure, but knowing the truth behind this aura allowed him to resist it. From the coffin, the image of an old man with a white beard that went to his chest was projected. He appeared to be a scholarly elder, but Shui didn't let his guard down. This elder used the same mysterious voice to speak to him.

"I am your progenitor, Claus Theos. You have done well my descendent."

"It's my honour, progenitor."

Only at this moment, did Shui allow himself to go down on one knee. Evil spirits were basically loose souls that had been corrupted, so the gentle atmosphere of the old man didn't seem to match with this description. Anyone else would have started doubting that this was an evil spirit, but Shui's eyes weren't so easily fooled. He could see that the old man in front of him was the origin of the sinister yellow aura he saw initially.

Once Shui went down on one knee, the evil spirit spoke once more.

"I shall give you my original cultivation method. Open it, and it shall be imprinted in your memory but you will never be able to share it."

A scroll suddenly appeared that floated in front of Shui. However, there were three reasons why Shui didn't even consider opening it. Firstly, there was a hint of the same sinister yellow aura on the scroll, likely something that would allow the evil spirit to force a connection to use his body. Secondly, the fact that he couldn't share it, probably because it didn't want its existence to be exposed to anyone strong enough to threaten it. Thirdly, he didn't desire it.

Instead of opening the scroll, Shui used his martial intent to take out the pseudo-true core. The moment he saw it, the evil spirit's face changed into something fit to describe as evil and the head of the elderly scaled woruse jumped out of the orb and attacked him.

"Damn you!!!"

The elderly scaled woruse was smaller than he remembered, but it was still bigger than the evil spirit. The space for their fight was obviously too limited so the two translucent figures floated higher to continue their battle. Even so, Shui didn't want any accidents so he jumped off the structure and stabbed a sword into the mountain as he went under the clouds. The battle was no longer in sight but the vibrations still reached him. It would certainly be a while before he could participate in a battle of this scale, so he paid close attention.

"Hey little bro, let me see."

"Okay."

Shui took out Cin from his satchel and put him on his head. The clouds were blocking their sight but both of them had strong enough senses to still detect what was happening, and they weren't the only ones. The assassins that were still inside the ancestral lands quickly backed away from the mountain when this tempestuous battle began. The clan leaders that were outside the mist wall could also tell that a horrific battle was happening. By now, only Shui was alive inside the mist wall, but since it wasn't noon yet no one left.

They now knew that assassins had infiltrated the ancestral lands so there was little hope that anyone else would come out, but they still stayed. Even Kalos didn't think about leaving since he wanted confirmation that Shui was dead and like the rest, he was also curious about the fierce battle occurring.

The battle that was happening was so devastating that even the mayor of Cyrus and the beast lord in Malirin Forest could feel the fluctuations caused by it. While the mayor hoped that the ones behind the fluctuations didn't bother his little town, the beast lord wished to battle. It had been too long since it could go all out so a proper fight was just what it wished for.