Bloodbound Codex: I Grow Stronger in Secret

One day later...

The day for the meeting among the strongest Individuals in the whole world arrived swiftly. Those who were considered among the Strongest weren’t simply ordered or summoned there; each of them had been sent a personal request letter by the Holy Church of Eluminad, and the letter allowed them to bring one or two attendants at maximum.

Although many would have expected some of these Strongest Individuals to reject the proposal because of the sudden attack involving thousands of Monsters, none of them actually did. Instead, the Kings and Queens were almost grinning at the thought of finally getting the chance to see one of these so-called ”Ancients” with their own eyes. The sudden appearance of the Ancients had already created enough questions, and now they were being given an opportunity to hear something directly from them.

That wasn’t the only reason they were attending the meeting either. They also intended to use this gathering to pressure one another. Even if they couldn’t take control of another Continent directly, they could still weaken its forces, damage its resources, or gain some kind of advantage through negotiations. However, there was one Individual whom none of them wanted to confront directly, the Dragon Emperor. They all wanted to find some way to weaken his position, whether through his forces, resources, or anything else that could reduce his influence, because his strength was simply too great.

Even though their Cultivation ranks were considered equal, the difference between the Dragon Emperor and the rest of them was still too large. He was so strong that he could literally defeat all of them together without breaking a sweat, and they were still unaware that he had already stepped beyond the Cultivation rank they believed he was currently in. On top of everything else, they wanted to see Azarion, who they believed was the orchestrator behind this entire Ordeal, and many of them had already guessed that the Church had called this meeting because of him.

At least the Queen of Angels, Solaris, and the Queen of Elves, Eliana, were completely certain about that. They were the two who had directly caused the Ancients to move through the Formation, so they already knew that their appearance wasn’t some unrelated incident. The others, aside from those two, had reached the same conclusion through different circumstances and pieces of Information. That was another reason they wanted to attend, as they wanted to see how an Ancient would handle the situation and what kind of Information they would reveal.

Although the reason why Azarion attended this meeting remained completely unknown because from everyone’s point of view, he should have rejected it, yet...he didn’t do that and instead came here, that only meant he had some hidden Agenda here other than the ones they were priotizing.

As of now, on the Island where the Holy Church of Eluminad remained under the sunlight, five Spirit Jets could be seen entering through the front of the city at the centre of the Island. These Spirit Jets looked completely different from the ones normally used by Nobles in Solara, and each one had its own style and design that made it possible to identify which Continent it came from.

The Spirit Jet belonging to the Angels had the familiar Wings attached to its rear, while its front stretched further forward than the normal designs used in Solara. Its smooth structure and refined surface gave the entire craft a luxurious appearance, fitting the style of the Angelic Continent. Beside it floated another Spirit Jet with a Dragon Crest etched into its lean front, immediately making its origin obvious. Unlike the Angelic craft, this one had wide Black Wings extending from its rear, giving the entire Spirit Jet a heavier and more aggressive appearance.

One might ask why these StrongestIndividuals had chosen to arrive in Spirit Jets instead of simply teleporting to the Island as they normally could. There were two reasons for that, the first was etiquette. Since they were about to meet the so-called Ancients, arriving properly through the city’s entrance was a simple way of showing that they weren’t treating the meeting casually. Maintaining good terms with these unknown Individuals could become important depending on what happened during the meeting, and none of the Kings or Queens wanted to create unnecessary hostility before they even spoke to them.

After all, this generation was going to see these Ancient for the first time in their entire life and The Dragon Emperor or Velmira were no exception to this even though they were alive since the era from a thousand years ago.

The second reason was their attendants. Although the Strongest Individuals themselves could teleport to almost any location within Eliomor, they couldn’t use that same method to teleport another person or living being along with themselves. If that had been possible, Eliana would have simply teleported Kael to the Island instead of making him travel there through his own methods. Because of that limitation, the Spirit Jets were the simplest way for the rulers to arrive together with the attendants they had been permitted to bring.

Just like that, each Spirit Jet from the different Continents looked completely different from the others, with each one carrying its own design that made its origin obvious while also separating it from the regular Spirit Jets used throughout Eliomor. As the five crafts approached the city, the Invisible barrier surrounding it suddenly reacted. A section of nearly two hundred meters at the entrance opened by itself, creating enough space for all five Spirit Jets to pass through.

At the entrance, a man could be seen floating in the air. He was a Human, young at age yet when none could sense his cultivation Rank, they dismissed the thought of him being young, he wore a white cassock, a long, close-fitting robe that reached down to his ankles, while a small badge-like piece of metal hung around his neck from a thin necklace chain. He raised one hand toward the approaching Spirit Jets and calmly gestured for them to enter.

”Welcome, Esteemed Guests, the meeting will take place in a certain place and time according to the Pope, please follow me, and I will guide you to that respective place.”

With his words, all five Spirit Jets slowly entered the city side by side. The moment they passed slightly beyond the threshold of the barrier, the opening behind them began closing on its own, the Invisible barrier returning to its original state as though the opening had never existed. The man who had been floating at the entrance then vanished from his position and reappeared in front of the Spirit Jets, beginning to guide them deeper into the city.

Inside the Angelic Spirit Jet, two people could be seen sitting in their respective seats. One of them was Queen Solaris, while the other was Seraphiel. The meeting had been the main topic Solaris had discussed with Seraphiel after Atlas left the previous day, and the revelation had surprised Seraphiel when she first heard about it.

She already knew about the Ancients from the highest-level History books she had read, and she understood how much power each of them was said to possess. Because of that, the Holy Church of Eluminad calling for a meeting and inviting the strongest Individuals from every Continent had shocked her. Solaris, who wasn’t the type to hide important matters from her closest friend, had explained everything she knew about why this meeting was being held.

Thinking back on it, Seraphiel could only sigh as she looked through the glass covering of the Spirit Jet and watched the city below. ’It is a good thing she brought me here. Through this meeting, I will be able to learn a lot about the other races and... most of all, these Ancients.’

Just as she finished that thought, the man guiding them spoke again, catching the attention of everyone inside the Spirit Jets.

”Now, this is where we stop, the meeting will take place in the Basilica, The Pope is already inside and waiting for all of you, so please step down from your Spirit Crafts and enter the Basilica.”

The Basilica stood at the very center of the city, its enormous structure rising far above the surrounding buildings. It was an ancient building that had existed for countless years, with its outer walls made from massive white stone that had remained intact despite the passage of time. Several enormous pillars supported the front of the structure, each one covered in intricate carvings that depicted scenes from the history of the Holy Church of Eluminad.

A set of wide stairs led toward the massive entrance, with dozens of steps extending from the ground to two enormous doors made from dark metal. The doors themselves were covered in detailed engravings of the first Pope of the Church standing before a massive formation, surrounded by figures that represented the different races of Eliomor.

Above the entrance stood a massive circular window made from several pieces of colored crystal, allowing sunlight to pass through it and illuminate the interior of the Basilica. Several smaller towers surrounded the main structure, while the tallest tower rose from the center and carried a huge bell that had been used by the Church for thousands of years.

PICTURE

As soon as his words ended, the upper glass of each Spirit Jet automatically opened, allowing the passengers to step outside. One after another, the Kings, Queens, and their attendants departed from their respective crafts. Once everyone had stepped out, the Spirit Jets slowly hummed before descending toward the ground on their own, releasing a small amount of Spirit Energy that caused the surrounding wind to howl beneath them.

And now the meeting was finally about to begin...