Birth of the Demonic Sword

The search for Tribulations brought Noah and June through every corner of the higher plane multiple times. They fought many punishments sent by Heaven and Earth during their travel, and they also met multiple packs of magical beasts that Noah didn't hesitate to arm with specific fake cores.

Strangely enough, the duo didn't find cultivators or hybrids. Noah guessed that most of them had decided to seclude themselves while they waited for something major to happen in the higher plane. After all, that was a good plan when considering the current state of the world.

Noah wasn't doing anything different. He traveled, but he didn't dive into any crazy quest that could increase his level quickly. The weak sky gave him energy, and the fake cores built for the magical beasts quickened the expansion of his world. Yet, he was growing slowly, and June allowed him not to mind that pace.

Noah thought about the issue from time to time. He found it funny that he had to reach the peak of the cultivation journey before accepting to improve slowly. The environment favored that approach, but he had never been the type to seclude himself in those methods.

Of course, Noah didn't ignore June's importance in the matter. She was the main reason behind his acceptance. The time spent traveling the sky with her didn't feel lost. He still felt the need to accelerate his growth, but the lack of options and the travels appeased that desire.

June also improved slowly. Absorbing Tribulations meant for the magical beasts were her version of seclusion. She shared Noah's desire to quicken her growth, but she had to accept that the current environment didn't give many options.

Heaven and Earth's almost complete control was the main issue in that environment. The sky was the only place that could offer more, but going there without a precise target and a plan made no sense. The area contained stronger cultivators and better materials, but the gains for Noah and June would remain limited even if they succeeded in an eventual mission.

The weak sky prevented Noah and June from finding specific battles or other problems that could quicken their growth, so they abandoned their hopes for now. They were ready to jump into a mess as soon as they noticed something, but they didn't despair during those empty and peaceful moments together.

"Is there someone nearby?" June asked while lazily floating next to Noah.

"You know it gets hard to sense my seeds after they fuse with different existences," Noah explained.

"And we have yet to learn how to read the sky," June sighed. "We haven't seen a Tribulation in a long time, and the same goes for the magical beasts."

"Maybe they have started to adapt their behavior to the environment," Noah guessed. "It makes sense to opt for a stable lair since Heaven and Earth keep fixing the sky."

"Think about it," June exclaimed. "Imagine all the rank 8 and 9 existences in the higher plane currently destroying the sky. Then, add the Tribulations and the projects happening inside the white world. Heaven and Earth must be wasting a lot of energy."

"That's probably their plan," Noah commented. "The rulers are buying time while throwing away energy that they don't need. They can reach a new harmony while forcing all of us to slow down. It's actually pretty smart."

"So what?" June scoffed. "Do we invade the sky and cause a mess to hinder their plans?"

"That would make us stronger," Noah explained, "Which will move the world's fairness in Heaven and Earth's favor. It's honestly a dead end to think about viable solutions."

"How troublesome," June voiced in an annoyed tone. "I guess we are doing fine. I've gotten far stronger in these years, and I don't even want to talk about you."

"You are just jealous," Noah laughed.

The ninth rank was immense, but Noah and June had traveled for a long time. Moreover, Noah had also been able to wield rank 9 power far before reaching that level. Lately, he had become able to feel his world stretching toward a superior realm. He couldn't see it clearly, but he knew that he was getting there.

June was one step right before that. She wasn't new to the ninth rank anymore, but she had yet to reach the point when she could feel the liquid stage.

"Oh, there is something ahead," June eventually announced.

"I can sense it too," Noah said as a familiar mass of energy entered the range of his consciousness.

Noah and June had been in that situation countless times already. They dropped their lazy hovering across the weak sky and shot forward. Noah's aura opened a path as the two relied on their movement techniques to reach their target in no time.

A familiar scene unfolded in their view. Dark clouds created a cage around a relatively vast pack of magical beasts. Those creatures resembled ferrets, but they had metal tails, long claws, and four sharp fangs that came out of their mouths.

The Tribulation launched lightning bolts that made June's eyes lit up. The pack of ferrets was relatively strong. It even featured a specimen in the middle tier, so Heaven and Earth had sent something capable of suppressing those creatures.

That only benefited June since her improvements depended on the power of the Tribulation. She shot forward and pierced the array of clouds before unfolding her aura and attracting all the lightning bolts in the area.

Heaven and Earth's lightning bolt felt a natural attraction toward June's body. They were her main fuel and nutrient since they allowed her to make her center of power able to endure higher amounts of energy.

The lightning bolts began to fall on June, and she laughed as injuries opened on her body. Her flesh burnt and broke, but she didn't seem to mind those events.

Noah remained outside the barrage of clouds, but nothing escaped his eyes. He had seen that scene countless times already, and he inevitably approved those gruesome methods. He had founded his entire cultivation journey in similar approaches.

The Tribulation sent lightning bolts until Heaven and Earth's true aura seeped into the clouds and inspected the situation. Everything began to disperse after the rulers understood that sending more power to their punishment was useless. June voiced a few taunts and curses as the crackling gas vanished, but nothing she said made that event last longer.

The injuries on June's body healed in the seconds that followed the dispersion of the Tribulation. Her body improved and generated new flesh that replaced the missing pieces and charred spots. Sparks also came out of her skin to fill the holes in her robes.

Noah and June had dealt with another Tribulation, so the time to leave had almost arrived. Noah only had to do something before that.

"I see that one of you has taken my fake cores," Noah announced as his pride unfolded in the area and suppressed the ferrets. "I can make better versions for all of you. Stay still for a bit."

Noah made his consciousness converge on the pack, but the middle tier specimen dooked something that made him halt the process. "You are Defying Demon, right? The dragons have told us to spread a message in the hope of reaching you.. They need your help."