"Dammit! I can't use my skills!" Dylas said.

Finally, Edard had enough ether to expand the dimension into a reasonable parlour, walled by a thin layer of Dragon-essense. The notification said it could accommodate fifty people, but he could crowd in more if he wanted.

Right now, Dylas, the corpse and himself were inside the dimension.

"Intruders can't use life energy in here. So you can't move or escape. Unless I allow it." Edard said, grinning.

"I get it. The whole thing is connected to your life energy; only your signature is at work here. So how about removing the restrictions for the meantime. I want to make it a comfortable parlour."

"You want to decorate it?"

"Yeah, put some chairs and tables and.."

"Do as you like. I will leave Nusi here. Hopefully, she won't teleport out."

"Talking about that teleport thing, I think I have something that can help. It's a paralysis rune that can interrupt teleportation."

"Really?"

"Yeah, lemme show you."

Dylas drew a hexagonal rune on the ground and put Nusi at its centre. He placed six inscribed stones at every corner, then he drew another cycle around the stones.

"It's done."

Edard nodded and jumped out.

It worked. Later, Dylas would tell him how the corpse had almost killed him trying to escape.

As Edard came out, he saw a notification.

You have reached your time limit. You will be transported into the next dungeon in:

Three...

Two...

One.

The world shifted.

Welcome to Dragonshell

Quest: Claim the Longevity Seed.

Time limit: none.

He appeared in the middle of a windstorm. His first instinct was to escape the storm but he knew it wasn't possible. It was the D-rank rebuff, he'd to withstand it.

The storm transformed into two massive wind blades and attacked from both sides.

"Violet Push."

He Pushed the blades several meters back. But they didn't like it and they were now angry. In a second, two blades multipled into sixteen blades of the same size and quality and attacked him.

"Violet Push."

He Pushed them back again.

They further divided into sixty two and they became faster, completely overwhelming the 2 seconds gap. He'd no choice but to use the Tempering.

Skin Tempering activated.

You have sustained three deep lacerations and >32 molecular cuts from a D-rank rebuff.

+5 resistance.

Each blade further divided into two, and each was formed by thousands of smaller blades which were the ones causing the actual damage.

But that gave him the time he needed to activate Violet Push again.

"Violet Push."

He Pushed the attacks back and before they came back his wounds had healed. Skin Tempering activated.

You have sustained 6 deep lacerations and >80 molecular cuts.

+8 resistance

The wind blades further divided and became much faster. But the Violet Push was already active again.

"Violet Push."

He switched. That way the two skills supported each other, covering their weaknesses.

You have sustained >32 molecular cuts.

+4 resistance

"Violet Push."

You have sustained >63 molecular cuts.

+9 resistance

"Violet Push."

It continued for a minute. Comfortably deflecting the attacks while his Tempering healed, and then taking the attacks head-on while his Push recovers. The wind blades kept on dividing and speeding up but it didn't matter. Edard was invincible, or at least he thought he was invincible until he suddenly saw a warning.

You have sustained >140 molecular cuts.

+19 resistance

Healing rate is overwhelmed.

Cool down time: 12 seconds.

This was the first time the healing rate was overwhelmed. In other words, he would be defenseless for the next twelve seconds. During that period, not even Push could save him.

Edard had three layers of defense: Violet Push, Skin Tempering and Lightning Ancestor. If Push was overwhelmed then Skin Tempering could take over before it recovers. But if Tempering was overwhelmed then Lightning Ancestor had to come in.

He'd wanted to avoid using Lightning Ancestor until later but it just didn't seem possible.

"Lightning Ancestor!"

It happened in an instant; a streak of light from the sky hit his chest and the previous flesh and blood in him transformed into a bolt of lightning. He felt like he was being electrocuted. He shuddered for several seconds until he realized it was... nothing, just his imagination. He was lightning and the dancing currents didn't affect him. The bolt transformed into a human figure with a head and neck, trunk and limbs. He was Edard.

Lightning Ancestor is synchronizing with the body's defense system...

40%...60%...80%...100%

Two defense system detected: Skin Tempering and Violet Push.

Violet Push: +1 second to Lightning Ancestor per use.

Skin Tempering: +40 seconds to Lightning Ancestor [Level will increase depending on resistance.]

Another unexpected development. After Sage Awakening, the duration of Lightning Ancestor had increased to 90 seconds. Skin Tempering added another 40 seconds and every time he used Push while in lightning form the duration would increase by 1 second. That would be a total of 195 seconds.

When the wind blew again, lightning splashed on the ground. A gaping hole appeared in his torso, but the missing parts came together and repaired themselves. No effect whatsoever.

The slicing wind furiously divided into nine hundred blades and slashed in a final desperation.

Edard just smiled.

You have withstood the D-rank rebuff.

Body damage - (0%)

Mind damage - (0%)

Soul damage - (0.3%)

-55 life energy/sec for the next five minutes.

Edard looked around him. He was in a forest. The trees were not as densely populated as in Luffy but there were boulders, many boulders, making the terrain steep.

"I wouldn't have survived that without the Lightning Ancestor." He murmured to himself, observing his body.

He brought Dylas out but left Nusi behind. He no longer needed her.

"Thanks to you, I am alive. Any injury?" Dylas asked.

"-55/sec for the next five minutes." Edard answered.

"We can just stay low before you regain your power. Assuming nobody attacks us." Dylas said with enthusiasm. Despite the danger he was still happy. Having the opportunity to enter any dungeon was a fortune. But entering a D-rank was a great fortune.

"What's this Longevity seed?" Edard asked.

"I've never heard of it." Dylas said.

"There is something I want to tell you." Edard said as he led them to a hiding spot. "When I pulled the dungeons here, there were two dungeons that reacted... differently. One was a Reservoir carrying slaves and the other is this dungeon. Being a part dragon, my body absorbs the dragon magic hidden in this dungeon. It belongs to something called Dragon Order."

"D...Dragon Order?!?!" Dylas exclaimed. "That's the infamous League of Liquidators, it's the only Northern organization that is popular even in the South. Everyone knows them." Dylas explained hurriedly. Apparently the Dragon Order had been around even before Dylas was imprisoned.

"If they are in the North, shouldn't their dungeons be there? I don't think my Immortal Dragon can reach there." Edard asked, puzzled. He'd been thinking about it ever since Dylas told him that dragons lived North of the Black Sea. What would bring their dungeon to the South?

"Exactly. What brings their dungeon here? This is the South, there shouldn't be any Northern dungeons." Dylas said.

"Unless if it was stolen?" Edard said.

"No, no." Dylas shook his head. "It's not plausible. The Black Sea is as large as the South. Nobody can cross it just to steal a dungeon? You can steal a better one here."

"What if the thieves were looking for something specific?"

"Who would be foolish enough to start a war with the Dragon Order? I don't think even the Salvation Army could do that."

After a period, Dylas cleared his throat and asked, "do you think it's related to your summoning?"

Edard quickly shook his head. "It's not. Unless if someone knew I would have the Immortal Dragon which is one-hundred percent impossible. I was given an option; I could have chosen any."

"I agree. Let's say someone stole it from the dragons for a reason we do not know."

"We don't know them but they are likely poking around, looking for an opportunity to strike..." his voice trailed off as he saw a movement in the distance.

He clenched his fist in a gesture to alert Dylas, like in the movies he used to watch. After the movement had disappeared, they walked stealthily and hid behind a short umbrella-like tree. The sun was strong, it heated up the white soil in the ground creating a mirage in the distance.

"Stay closer. Two o'clock on the left. Whatever it's, it's huge." Edard whispered as he saw the movement again.

"It's coming.... "

Before he finished his sentence, a gigantic python with a pair of horns had appeared from the said direction. It's huge bluish scales and dry torn mouth coupled with some naked bones on its back greeted them.

Edard appraised it as he changed to a battle stance.

Demidragon, female, solid level 10/10 (Tertiary)

It was just a Tertiary beast. Edard was a Sage, not the most powerful Sage but definitely not a regular Sage. The difference was clear.

He pointed at the demidragon and it froze in place. Not by its choice of course. The air around it had frozen into a solid, unbreakable ice, locking it in place. Edard moved too fast for Dylas's eyes and slit the demidragon in half.

Dylas looked stupefied. "....Ice? He can even use ice."

"What are you daydreaming about? It was just a Tertiary beast. Take the cake. Let's move."

"And you were a Primary demon sixteen hours ago." Dylas murmured, pocketing the crystal.

Edard pretended he didn't hear.

"Dylas, what do you think about the slaves in the Reservoir. I wanted to check them out right away but my situation didn't allow it."

"Well, Reservoirs are usually equipped with basic life amenities to maintain the slaves in good shape before the auction, a few hours more won't affect them."

"If I survive the war, I will find a nice city far away from here and release them. I'm planning on giving them my Contract Seal to help them get started. I don't like the whole slavery thing..."

"What's that?" Dylas cut in, pointing at a ball of smoke coming from a solitary tower.

"Is that where our Seed is?"

"May be. Let's check it out."

Fifteen minutes later, the team jolted to a stop as they came out of the forest and found themselves in a large, open space. The tower came from an ancient castle whose walls stood five hundred meters away from the edge of the forest. The entire castle was surrounded by uncountable archers and flying demidragons that provided aerial support. The archers were eager to fire and the flying beasts were happy to attack.

Even as Edard and Dylas contemplated, a demidragon jumped in front of them into the empty space.

On their way, Edard had frozen seven of its kind. This was the eighth.

He was about to attack when the surrounding suddenly turned dark as if the sun had been covered by a cloud.

Rain?

Hell no! It was a cloud of arrows and spears coming from the castle.

The arrows and spears instantly struck the demidragon dead.

Edard and Dylas withdrew back into the forest.

Lesson number 1: The castle and its surroundings is a no-go area.

"What do we do now?" Dylas asked.

"We are surrounded." Edard said.

Dylas looked around him but he saw nothing. Then he looked at Edard inquisitively.

"We are completely surrounded. It's strange but I didn't see them or even hear them until now." Edard said.

Dylas still didn't see anyone but he activated his battle runes.

Dé Abas

He was a Sage and a Strategist. But more importantly, he was the Queen's advisor.

"Why did you protect us from the rebuff?" Micro Furtak asked him. Yes, he asked the question but the surrounding five people were just as interested.

"I believe we share a common interest." De Abas answered.

"A common interest?" Micro asked with a raised brow. "I believe we both want to capture the red-haired boy but this is a dungeon, everyone only looks out for their interest."

"Then let's remain together until we capture the boy. More importantly, shouldn't you be worried about that woman? She just disappeared."

The group laughed. "Ayata Déniz? She is probably just lost. I wouldn't mind if she was shredded to pieces by the rebuff." Dáya Báyir said.

There were roughly thirty hunters behind Abas and all of them looked up with raised brows.

"What?" Daya snapped, causing the hunters to look down.

It was at this moment that another rebuff started from the eastern part of the forest.

A newcomer.

"Let's go and meet our guest. As long you are within hundred meters from me nothing can hurt you, or detect you." Abas said. The others gave him an incredulous look. Who needed his protection? They were all seasoned warriors that had been living in the wild for decades. A single boy, born with a golden spoon in his mouth, wouldn't scare them.

"From the feel of that energy, we probably need to team up." Abas said. The hunters nodded but the six commanders just sneered and looked away.

It wasn't until they saw a man made of lightning, a man who withstood a D-rank rebuff with no shield, that they finally agreed to team up. Six commanders at the peak of the Tertiary Awakening, a Sage and thirty hunters.

"It seems he can't see or sense us. Why don't we ambush him?" Daya Báyir suggested.

"We wait. I want to see his capabilities closely." Abas said.

A few minutes later, they saw the red-haired boy froze a Demidragon at the peak of the Tertiary Awakening. Those that had doubts about the teaming up stopped.

"It's time. Advance." Abas murmured.

They formed a cycle around Edard and Dylas. Each readied his most lethal attack and fired it.

Edard had seen them coming. It wasn't about whether he could deal them, it was about which ones he would kill first.

Edard

As an Initiate, he had defeated two Secondary humans. As a Primary cultivator, he had defeated the Secondary skeleton boss. As a Secondary cultivator, he had defeated the Tertiary goblin boss.

He was now a Sage. A Sage with a sword.

A five-meter wide fire ball, a hundred meter long wind sword, a water dragon, a hundred black earthen spears and a red bolt of an unknown energy attacked him at once.

Dylas fidgeted at the sight of so many attacks. But Edard was calm.

"Violet Push."

The barrage of attacks hit the thin layer of violet light surrounding Edard and Dylas and dissipated. He extended his hands and the six commanders froze in place. Locked in a box of an unbreakable ice. The thirty hunters behind Abas froze as well. Abas was the only one able to block the ice. He did nothing, the ice just hit him and it disappeared.

Edard narrowed his eyes in surprise. He didn't understand. Why would the ice disappear? Was it some kinda heat energy evaporation?

Dáya was the first to melt his ice with lava. Then Kinra melt his with fire. Micro Furtak melted his with water. Sukar broke his with vibrations. Farir cut his with slicing wind. And finally Barbila melted his with a red bolt of an unknown energy.

But the ice was Cursed. And the Curse was transmitted to the targets.

You have Cursed 36 targets.

+252 minutes/sec for 1 minute.

The commanders could withstand the Curse but the hunters weren't as lucky.

30 targets can't withstand Curse.

They dried up like weed.

Edard unsheathed his sword and appeared behind Sukar. He slashed through the lion's fur and cut his head off with no resistance.

The other five commanders surrounded him. Each attacking with elements and lifesaving treasures.

"Violet Push."

Skin Tempering activated.

Multiple bruises at different places.

+0.5 resistance.

Dáya removed a golden necklace and spit his blood on it, forming a translucent barrier around him. Edard cut through the barrier with his blade and cut his head off with absolutely no resistance.

He jumped and turned his torso to the left to avoid a blast from Barbila. Then he slashed through the man's skull like butter.

Edard was faster and his sword could cut through anything. His sword could also pin his target to the ground by manipulating gravity. And it could absorb the target's life energy thereby weakening them. This made him an unexpected nightmare for the commanders.

The old man Furtak created a water barrier which looked like a joke but it was actually the only thing that even slightly hindered Edard's blade. Long enough for the man to escape. Edard didn't pursue. He focused on the remaining two.

Kinra caught Edard off guard and held his hands behind his back for Farir to impale him. But Edard dodged to the side at the last minute and Farir impaled Kinra instead.

Edard blurred and grabbed Farir before the man pulled back. He pierced his chest with his sword and dropped his lifeless body to the ground.

The six commanders were down.

You have gained the skill Killing Intent.

Every time you kill, death makes a mark on your aura and emotion. Killing Intent projects this aura and emotions to your surroundings. The more you kill the more this aura increases and the more you lose your emotions.

Activate Killing Intent? Y/N?

You have 9 slots remaining. Choose wisely.

+248 life energy

+105,831 hours

Every time he used his sword he would gain longevity and life energy.

The only one remaining was Dé Abas. He didn't move a finger from the beginning of the battle to its end.

They faced each other like gentlemen about to talk. But Edard had nothing to say.

He attacked.

Abas unsheathed his blade and attacked as well.

Edard blocked the enemy's sword with his sword, but Abas slid his sword to the side and the sword suddenly disappeared.

Edard only saw a flash and his neck dripped. Somehow the enemy's sword had Danced around his sword to his neck in that instant.

Skin Tempering activated: you have sustained an ultra deep laceration on your neck. Both carotids and the throat were cut.

Tempering is overwhelmed.

Cool down time: 15 seconds.

+10 resistance.

You have been Cursed by a servant of Queen Dé.

-20 hours/second for 24 hours

Curse may increase or decrease depending on your distance from the Queen. The closer you get the more potent the Curse becomes.

Current distance from the Queen: 870,040km

Forget about Curse, he would lose all his blood before that fifteen seconds was over.

Violet Push wouldn't help since the damage was already done.

His only option was...

"Lightning Ancestor."

Lightning Ancestor activated.

All physical injuries are negated while in lightning form.

Estimated time: 130 seconds

Plus 1 second for every Push.

The bleeding stopped and he was back to his top form. Not only that, he received a notification.

Elven Dance has reached level 2 (Tier 1)

There were two things that happened in that single exchange. First, his opponent's blade had blocked his successfully which shouldn't happen. His blade cut through anything like butter so blocking against it was impossible. And yet, Abas just did it. He got the same feeling as when Abas melted his ice.

He didn't understand. Why? Why were his attacks ineffective against the man?

Edard attacked again, aiming for his neck. Abas jumped high into the sky and teleported to his side where he struck hard. His sword burst with a brown energy that exploded upon contact. Edard was shredded to pieces but he was back together in no time.

Though something else had happened.

Estimated time for Lightning Ancestor reduced by 18 seconds.

So extensive damage would reduce usage time.

"You are too obvious, Outsider. Maybe you don't use swords in your world. As a true Dé, I can absorb the energy in your attacks. Half-assed attacks won't even scratch me."

He can absorb the energy in my attacks? Dammit! That must be why.

Edard gritted his teeth and tried to level up his Dance. Unlike anyone else he'd met, the man in front of him could teleport. He had to focus. He needed to level up before his Lightning Ancestor ran out.

They crossed swords again and he missed, again.

Estimated time reduced by 13 seconds.

But he leveled up as well.

Elven Dance has reached level 3

Elven Dance has reached level 4

Elven Dance has reached level 5

Elven Dance has reached level 6

Elven Dance has reached level 7

He felt no consciousness in his sword but he could now feel the entire blade, like the hilt in his hand. He felt more in control.

Edard blurred and disappeared. When he reappeared next he was facing the unguarded back of his opponent.

He slashed with all his might.

In that split second, Abas turned around and blocked his sword, sending the same brownish energy into his blade.

Aaargh... He groaned internally. He wouldn't give his enemy the pleasure of his scream.

Why? Why did he felt like he had blocked with his bare hand?

He took several seconds but he finally got it. It was the feel. Because he could feel the blade, he could also feel its pain.

He needed to turn the feeling off, else he would be distracted. He should feel the sword but shouldn't feel sympathy for it. It was just a weapon; it could be replaced like a piece of cloth.

They crossed blade again and this time Edard dropped his blade due to the pain.

His body exploded as his opponent sliced him in half.

Estimated time reduced by 27 seconds

But he leveled up as well.

Elven Dance has reached level 7

Elven Dance has reached level 8

Elven Dance has reached level 9

It wasn't until he'd almost run out when he finally got it.

Feel the sword while you turn off your sympathy.

Elven Dance has reached level 10 which is the maximum proficiency for a Tier 1 skill.Elven Dance has reached Tier 2: move your sword the same way you move your hand.

Elven Dance has reached level 1

He achieved the second Tier, but his Lightning Ancestor was out.

"What's wrong, Outsider? How long can you keep turning into a lightning? Sooner or later I'll have your head."

Abas teleported behind his back and before he could react, his blood had splashed on the ground.

His teleportation is definitely faster than a single afterimage.

Edard upgraded to five afterimages while he Pushed Abas back.

Several muscles have been cut on your back.

+5 resistance

He was cut but it wasn't enough to overwhelm his Skin Tempering.

Edard blurred and he left five afterimages behind. For a low level cultivator, the afterimages might be a distraction but not for Abas. He could pinpoint Edard's exact position. But Edard could now react and dodge much faster thus sustaining less injuries.

His problem was he just couldn't see his opponent's sword no matter how he looked. His Spiritual Sense was resistant to illusions so he was sure it wasn't an illusion. But how? Whenever his opponent moved, his would just disappear. And when he saw it next the damage would already be done.

A disappearing sword, teleportation and the ability to absorb attacks. His opponent was prepared.

You have sustained a facial laceration.

+1 resistance.

Dammit! Other skills leveled up just by using them, for Dance you needed to learn before you leveled up. Why couldn't the system be uniform?

A deep ankle laceration.

+4 resistance.

A superficial thigh laceration.

+1 resistance.

A deep forearm laceration.

+1 resistance.

He was now sure teleportation was faster than five afterimages. What of ten?

He went all out. If he could at least match his opponent's speed then he might reduce the injury even if he couldn't see his opponent's sword.

Ten afterimages filled the battlefield. It was blinding and baffling.

And now his opponent was no longer faster. His opponent took a split second after every teleport before he could activate another but his afterimages were continuous.

The battle continued with Edard receiving less injuries but he still couldn't see his opponent's sword.

But something else was happening to his sword. It was reacting. It wasn't clear until he leveled up.

Elven Dance has reached level 2

Elven Dance has reached level 3

Elven Dance has reached level 4

Elven Dance has reached level 5

He finally got it. There was a connection between himself and the sword. The sword didn't talk but it could somehow tell him when and where an attack was coming by causing an itch inside of him. An itch at the targeted spot in his body.

Whenever he felt the itch, he would turn around and saw the attack. With repeated movements, he began to pick shady images of the opponent's sword.

Elven Dance has reached level 6

Elven Dance has reached level 7

Elven Dance has reached level 8

Elven Dance has reached level 9

Elven Dance has reached level 10 which is the maximum proficiency for a Tier 2 skill.

Elven Dance has reached level Tier 3: your sword has gained the First Consciousness.

Elven Dance has reached level 1 (Tier 3)

He successfully blocked an attack for the first time. Abas tried his first trick of sliding the sword but Edard felt an itch on his left arm and he reacted accordingly.

He was now an equal in both speed and swordmanship. It was time to show his opponent the true power of the blue blade.

You have infused 8 units of gravity in your blade.

Blade is fully activated.

Life energy drain: 100% active

Longevity drain: 100% active

Dimensional cutting edge: 100% active.

It happened in an instant. Edard felt an itch and reacted by blocking with his sword.

His opponent blocked his sword by absorbing all its power including the gravity. But Edard had a second plan. He created a Dragon-essence dagger in his left and punched it through his opponent's groin. Abas minimised the damage by absorbing the energy in the dagger but he still received a gaping hole in his torso.

His opponent tried to teleport away but gravity suddenly increased. That fraction of immobility allowed Edard to cut his opponent's arm like gel.

He slashed again. This time the sword cut through his opponent's left arm.

Dragon-essence has stored a bio energy.

+280 life energy

+12055 hours

"You will pay for this. My Queen will you you down."

Edard harrumphed.

The entire fight didn't take up to ten minutes.

He turned to the desiccated ice sculptures of the other hunters and the six fallen commanders. They tried to kill him, but they were dead and he was still standing.

It was time to Curse. He would take his time to drain every scrap of longevity in Abas' body, replacing the longevity he was currently losing. That was, of course, supposing Abas was powerful enough withstand his Curse.

But just before that.

"Dylas, do you have a name for my sword?"

"A name?"

"Yeah, a name."