Rhea and Darian walked out of the building. Then she huffed, and her golden wings appeared on her back. She waved her hand, and her yellowish aura extended to Darian.
It connected to him instantly. A moment later, she jumped, taking him through the skies.
They traveled north, toward the empire's mountainous region. In no time, they reached a place filled with towering peaks piercing the blue sky, covered by an eternal veil of snow—even though it was the height of summer. All around, unreal blue lakes reflected the vastness of the mountains.
Deep canyons cut through the landscape; the terrain was extremely rugged. Majestic brown bears roamed the slopes, while eagles soared across the wide skies, a reminder of how wild and untouched this land still was.
It was a stunning place—one Darian had never imagined he'd visit. He remembered reading about it once. Long ago, this place had been known as the Canadian Rockies.
In what looked like a pretty ordinary spot among all that, Rhea landed.
They walked toward the discreet entrance of a cave. Inside, she picked up a small rock and pressed it. That was the key to unlock a hidden passage.
A door revealed itself deeper inside the cave. The passage was narrow, and they moved forward in silence, heading underground.
The space below was pitch black. Darian grew more and more tense as they went down.
After a few minutes, the path suddenly opened up. It was like stepping through an invisible door. The new space was massive—hundreds of meters wide.
Darian was stunned. How could such a huge space exist underground? On the far wall, giant runic markings glowed in shifting colors, lighting up the room in a strange and magical way.
He was led to the end of the hall. There, a doorway stood open—but it was covered with colorful runes, making it impossible to see what lay beyond.
In front of it, waiting for them, was a well-dressed middle-aged man with tied-back black hair and a sharp appearance.
On his chest, he wore the symbol of the New Arcadia Empire. He was a military officer—someone so powerful that even a High Human wouldn't dare disrespect him.
"Sir," Rhea greeted as she approached.
The man gave Darian a sharp look, sensing the highly evolved ring on his forehead.
"Yeah, bringing him early makes sense. We couldn't afford to wait," he muttered, then locked eyes with Darian. "You're probably confused, but I'm the only one authorized to tell you about this place. You're standing in the most important and secret location in the entire empire."
Darian took a deep breath.
"This place is called: The Chromaraic God's Training Array."
Darian's eyes widened. Chromaraic? He'd only heard that name in one place… that book.
It was the name of the parent race of humans—and many other humanoid species related to them. Wherever there were humanoid races in the universes, at the very beginning, the Chromaraic had been there.
Another key term was "Array." In that other universe, Array didn't exist—only inscriptions.
In practice, the two were almost the same. Inscriptions used natural elements with power and arranged them to create effects.
Arrays, on the other hand, were a thousand times more complex—and just as much more powerful. They were made from terrifying forces and elements that came directly from their creator. In universes like Mannaz's, where there wasn't much power, Arrays couldn't even be made.
The man went on: "The New Arcadia Empire found this Array during an S-rank mission in the past. It was a gift from the heavens, one that cost us all our resources for decades. But now, it's become the core strength of the empire's High Humans."
"Inside, you'll go through a trial created by the Chromaraic God. If you succeed, you'll gain the Seven Elemental Stars Physique. That's the empire's greatest power—the thing that sets us apart from everyone else on Earth..."
According to him, all the other empires had some kind of unique power. They had found secret techniques, Arrays, or other gifts in other universes that couldn't be copied.
Each High Human on Earth, besides their individual blessing and talents, got this special bonus depending on the empire they came from. For New Arcadia, the Seven Elemental Stars Physique enhanced the user's body, giving them insane capabilities.
Basically, the five basic natural elements, plus Yin and Yang, were fused into the body. This gave you natural affinity with those elements. If your blessing used any of them, your power would multiply several times over. But even if not, you'd still gain massive resistance against them.
Everyone who used this technique became super resistant and skilled with those elements. The empire's High Humans were specialists in missions set in harsh, element-heavy environments.
Once someone stepped into the trial, the runes of the technique would be carved onto their body automatically. No need to study anything. On the flip side, the trial had five levels of challenges—and with each stage, the runes grew stronger and more powerful.
The technique had nine levels in total—level 9 being the peak. There was no way to improve the runes outside this place.
As for the trial itself, it was simple: fight enemies created by the Array. They weren't real, but their power was.
With each floor, more enemies would appear, and they'd get stronger and stronger.
The man finished: "Unfortunately, only pure humans can enter this Array. Since you just came back after passing the test, your body is still adjusting to the ring's power. In another day or two, you'll stop being a regular human and fully become a High Human—and when that happens, you won't be able to enter here anymore."
"At the same time, the trial is impossible for humans with no power at all. That's why there's only one perfect moment to take advantage of this place: during the transition phase right after you return. In other words, you only get one shot. Whatever level you reach in the technique—that's the one you'll keep forever."
Darian sighed. Rhea, beside him, murmured gently, "Don't be so nervous. Even just getting to level 1 is already a big deal. If you've got a bit of talent, level 2 isn't out of reach."
He nodded, taking it in.
The man went on. The trial was absurdly hard—especially since Darian was still physically just a regular human.
Even with the power of the ring, in this unstable transition phase, no one could use their blessing properly. And a regular human body was incredibly fragile. On top of that, he didn't have a Summoner to back him up. He'd be fighting alone.
In Darian's case, he didn't have any issue using his ring's power… but he felt it clearly: there wasn't a single trace of the black or white power. The last time he died—when he woke up in the dungeon to make the contract with Niara—he'd been empty too. It was a pattern. Every time he died, it all disappeared… but at least he didn't really die, so he couldn't complain.
Another key thing: the five floors didn't kill anyone. The Array had a magic power that, before someone actually died, would kick them out—still alive.
Sure, depending on the injuries, he could die afterward. But every time you move up a floor, the participant gets the option to give up or keep going. You just need to know your limits.
"I made it to the third floor on my turn," Rhea said casually. "There, I fought 25 opponents and killed ten of them. With those kills, I advanced to level 3 of the technique. But reaching levels 1 and 2 is the most common for everyone. That's already super strong, so you don't need to take crazy risks and end up dying over it."
"What levels do the others usually reach? Are there many who reach the top?" Darian asked quickly.
She shook her head. "I got lucky because of my blessing. But even reaching level 3, you're already considered a rare genius. Anything above that, people call unmatched. There are only records of four people in all of history who went beyond. Two reached level 4, one reached 5, and one reached 6. All of them were Supreme Spiritual Guardians."
Darian looked genuinely surprised. The man, on the other hand, went on calmly:
"Even though no one gets that far, if you pass the first level, you already get some reward besides the technique. Each level you pass gives you a bigger reward. Even if you're kicked out, you keep whatever you got."
Rhea added, "These rewards are unpredictable. Some people have gotten really unique and powerful stuff. I got an item that made the leaders of the Empire go nuts. I sold it to them at the time and made way more money than you earned recently."
After she said that, Darian went quiet, thinking. If the Empire owned that Array, why did they go nuts over it? Couldn't they just pick out all the rewards that seemed good to them?
That meant...
They only brought this Array to Earth and, after figuring out how it worked, they used it automatically without actually controlling anything. This was way beyond the Empire's power.
The Array had to be something ancient and insanely powerful, with endless possibilities inside. All the Empire could do was send people in and hope they got good stuff out of it. Even so, the benefits from the physical technique alone were already amazing.
Darian's eyes lit up subtly, and he turned to the man. "Back in that universe, I learned that info about blessings and the real power of Spiritual Guardians is super valuable..."
From his expression, the man understood. "Don't worry, it's impossible for anyone to know what level you reached in the technique after you come out. We have records only because the ones who reach level 3 usually tell others themselves. That way, all the Empire's clans start fighting to recruit them, and the person gains a lot from it. But you don't have to say anything if you don't want to."
"We just ask that you show the reward you got, so we can evaluate it. But if you don't want to sell it, that's your call too. You being strong is really important to the Empire. We don't harm anyone — we're just here to support you so you can grow."
Darian nodded. Because of the rewards and the man's words, he was now sure. The Empire only protected the Array. Darian could go all the way to the final floor, and no one would know. And since the rewards were random, getting something amazing wouldn't necessarily show how far he went.
"Any other questions?" the man asked. Darian shook his head. "Great, we'll be here waiting for you."
Rhea added, "Don't be stupid like before. If you clear a floor and you're really hurt, choose to leave. Your life is the most valuable thing you've got. Don't let arrogance or greed take over."
He looked into her worried eyes. Then nodded, feeling weird. That woman was genuinely kind and tried to take care of him, even though she knew nothing about him.
Darian moved forward, taking a deep breath. He quickly stepped through the runic door.
...
His body tensed as he suddenly found himself inside another cave.
The cave was sealed and square. The floor was made of bricks. It looked like a dueling arena, and there was a sculpture of a giant serpent on the far wall.
*Buzzz*
He had just stepped in when the wall lit up. It was like daytime inside the cave. A roar echoed through the air, making Darian's ears tremble.