Tales of the Endless Empire

Chapter 430: The Lotus Opens

From time to time, Ryan still rambled about how he had shown them his power, but otherwise it was very quiet on their island. This was quite the opposite of what was happening on the other islands. The lotus now stood on the brink of blooming, and more islands tried to push forward. An intense war raged among the factions in the front row, and they definitely showed how they had earned their position.Thalion noticed that most of those factions were a wild mix of all races, in contrast to a few on the outer edges. Those closer to the golden lotus also had a lot more members. It wasn’t yet time for them to engage in that conflict, but the chaos gave Thalion hope. This way, they might have a chance to slip through and get the damn fruit.

This whole mission was already taking far too long in Thalion’s mind. The fights were also too close for his liking. One wrong decision or a slow reaction, and he would be dead. Every one of those E-grades were heavy hitters, and a single attack could be enough to end Thalion’s life.

The pink pixie had almost managed to kill Ryan in one go, which was hella impressive given what the Chosen had shown afterward. Even if the dude had been an idiot for getting hit like that, healing his body and releasing that kind of energy wasn’t bad. Currently, the Chosen seemed to accept that he had overtaxed himself a bit and was mostly doing some kind of meditation.

Ryan’s power was desperately needed after Thalion saw a few clashes between the leaders before the lotus. The shockwaves and auras they constantly released surpassed everything Thalion could produce. It was getting close to what Ryan had unleashed with the fiery tornado. They would definitely be able to fight back, and if Ryan fought as lazily as last time, it would be game over.

Three leaders especially stood out. One looked like a tree man. With his humanoid form and bark-like skin, he seemed able to tank a lot of damage while killing everything with a single strike of his short axe.

It was quite the irony that a tree man fought with an axe… Thalion thought, a smile creeping onto his face.

The next was some sort of human who summoned specters that fought for him or merged into his body, transforming it into a terrifying close-range fighter that detonated explosions with every punch.

Pretty cool way of fighting in general. Thalion liked it a lot. It was diverse and gave many options to adapt to different environments while not lacking the power to kill anyone who wasn’t quick enough to dodge.

With the last one, Thalion couldn’t say what race it was. Since it stood on two legs and had two arms, he guessed it was humanoid, but everything else was hidden under a dark cloak. The fellow was an incredibly fast assassin who killed everyone in seconds. As for weapons, Thalion wasn’t sure what they were—maybe daggers, maybe claws.

The assassin wasn’t tall, closer to the size of a dwarf, but that didn’t stop him from murdering anyone who dared to get too close. Thalion was convinced this one would give them the most trouble in the fight for the fruit. He was fast, and if he wasn’t killed—which was unlikely—the assassin would definitely be able to catch up with Thalion.

Until now, Thalion hadn’t had problems keeping up speed, but against this guy, he was greatly outmatched. The assassin also had to possess multiple movement skills. One moment he jumped on open air; the next, he dissolved into shadows before appearing somewhere else.

In the meantime, the leaves of the golden lotus began to glow as the flower slowly started to open.

They couldn’t relax for much longer. Thalion was already looking for a way out. He doubted that the skyship they had lost would cost them this much, but it would be best if they could steal one. There were a lot of skyships in the area, but the question was whether they could even take one.

After grabbing the fruit, they would have to run for their lives, and a skyship clearly wasn’t fast enough. If one of their party had still been alive, they could have waited at the outer edges or some distance away with a skyship. The ring of clouds they had passed through earlier was still there, which meant they should be safe once inside it—especially with Eagly, as Thalion should be able to hide very well there.

Going back and parking a skyship there sadly wasn’t possible anymore. They would lose their hard-fought position, the gap of empty islands behind them long since closed by new arrivals.

I could really use a few days of cultivation. This nonstop fighting against such high-leveled opponents isn’t making that much fun.

Thalion felt weaker in the recent fights. He still remembered how he had charged an entire army of vampires almost on his own—and now he struggled to even kill a single fighter.

“Ryan, it’s time. We have to move forward now, or we will miss our opportunity,” Thalion said, standing up as his resolve hardened. He needed to be laser-focused for what was to come. There couldn’t be any more distractions or stray thoughts.

Until they returned to the kingdom, a day might pass, which meant it would get hard to reach the two million leaderboard points. This also depended on whether he would be allowed to join another team, because those million-point missions were almost unbeatable if you weren’t a Chosen. That everyone in their party had died so quickly was just unlucky.

“Don’t tell me what to do. I will burn those fuckers, and you get the damn fruit,” Ryan snorted.

Thalion thought, but didn’t dare say it out loud. It was also quite obvious why Ryan wanted him to get the fruit—because the moment he had it, all hell would break loose and everyone would go for Thalion. In the meantime, Ryan would be able to exit without much trouble. Thalion really began to despise where this stupid mission was heading.

At least Ryan didn’t waste more time and sprinted for the next island, leaping over the gap with a massive jump. The crocs already had a hard time fighting off the other islands and weren’t paying much attention to Ryan and Thalion. They paid a heavy price for that as Ryan began slaughtering them.

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Instead of joining the battle, Thalion rose into the air as Eagly, hoping that his passive skill would hide him from prying eyes. In the meantime, Ryan conquered the next island, which left him standing before the last island in their way.

This one was different from all the others. A massive fortress stood upon it, and across the island were countless towers, all armed to the brink. On top of each tower stood something like a ballista that could actually hit the golden lotus—or the fighters around it. The towers and fortress walls were also filled with all kinds of runes that empowered anyone standing within them.

Normally, Thalion would have really liked to take a closer look at the design, but there was no time for that right now. What a shame. These days were quite depressing for Thalion in general.

Ryan took a moment to observe the enemy, but then he didn’t hesitate anymore. The longer Thalion watched him, the less he understood him. The guy was incredibly stupid when fighting—but with his power, it didn’t matter that much. Ryan didn’t care about elite enemies or towers and went straight for the fortress, dodging or outright tanking the incoming attacks. Even though his body wasn’t that tanky, every single attack was erased or greatly weakened by the fiery domain surrounding him.

Thalion slowly began to advance, trying to look for an angle to sneak through while always keeping an eye on the golden lotus. The lotus was almost fully open, and its leaves radiated a crazy amount of power. Thalion began to wonder what the fruit would do. Judging by the power level alone, it had to be worth far more than one million leaderboard points.

Thalion contemplated. There was, of course, the threat of the tablet—but he was almost sure it had been a bluff. Still, he didn’t know the truth, and if he was wrong, it would be the end of him.

No. First get the fruit. Then you can still think about what to do with it, Thalion told himself, focusing on the target and the powerhouses already fighting right above it.

If Ryan wasn’t fast enough to join their fight and distract them, Thalion would have a real problem getting the fruit. There was the option of using his bloodline skill to get in and out, but that would cost at least seventy percent of his total mana—if not more. The distance he could teleport afterward would be maybe fifty meters, which was nothing for an E-grade fighter.

He would have the fruit, but the escape while running low on mana could get very difficult. He could swallow a mana flask preemptively, but even then, it would still be extremely dangerous.

Thalion got the same feeling he had when he surfed his first ten-meter wave. Normally, he loved the adrenaline kick and the thrill. Now it was dampened by the fact that he was behind in raw power. He was like a mouse about to steal a cat’s snacks. If one of those powerhouses landed a single hit, it would likely be over.

With every second, the fight above the lotus intensified as more than eight factions clashed. It could only be moments until the lotus was ready.

Ryan wouldn’t make it! Thalion realized as the lotus was about to fully open. Ryan was still inside the fortress, killing fighters while shouting something about fire, rage, the Cinder King, and him being a Chosen.

Damn it. Then I have to do it on my own somehow… Thalion thought, panic rising as he began to speed toward the lotus.

At least the towers on the island were distracted by Ryan, which allowed Thalion to fly over unnoticed.

This changed immediately when he left the island and went for the golden lotus in the middle of everything. There were over eighty fighters in the air above the lotus, and no one was going to let Thalion through. The chaos was so intense that Thalion couldn’t even tell which faction they belonged to.

The elites were fighting each other directly above the lotus, while their underlings battled higher up in the sky. The problem was that Thalion couldn’t sneak his way in, and forcing his way through was also out of the question. He was simply too weak for such a tactic.

Then it happened—the lotus bloomed, its leaves releasing massive amounts of golden light, while in the middle a fruit began to hum with power. The fruit was golden and only the size of an apple, very small compared to the massive leaves.

Thalion didn’t hesitate for a single second. He shifted into his human form and triggered his bloodline skill to teleport in. The elites slowed each other down on their way to the lotus with the constant barrage of attacks they threw at one another. This allowed Thalion to be the first to reach the golden fruit. He grabbed it, barely holding the Sanguis Impera back from consuming it, before placing it into his spatial amulet.

Then he released a mana wave, mostly as a distraction, and activated his bloodline skill again to reappear roughly where he had been before. Another shapeshift later, and Eagly was flying like a rocket in the direction he had come from. Thalion had activated every movement skill in his repertoire to be as fast as possible.

It must have taken a moment before any of the elites understood what had just happened. It took even longer for them to connect the dots between the man with red skin and the eagle now beelining for the dense clouds in the distance. It was likely some of the underlings who delivered the message that he had shifted into the eagle.

Within seconds, everyone knew that the eagle was the one who had taken the fruit of the golden lotus. Every leader stopped their current fights and dove straight after Thalion.

The assassin performed multiple jumps and teleports, reaching the croc island in seconds before continuing the pursuit. Thalion’s thoughts were racing. He knew he wasn’t fast enough. At some point, the elites would catch up—and then he was fucked.

He considered using Mistform at full power, which should be faster than Eagly, but then there was the mana problem. After his stunt, Thalion only had twenty percent left, and Mistform was far from a cheap skill, especially when used at full force over a prolonged time.

The next issue besides speed was that everyone from the islands was rising into the sky—even those farthest away from the golden lotus. Everyone wanted their chance at the fruit. For those this far out, it was likely they didn’t even know Thalion had it yet and were just killing anyone they came across for experience.

That gave Thalion another idea after a quick glance confirmed that the assassin was closing in fast. There was still no trace of Ryan, so Thalion guessed he was stuck in the middle of the battle.

This stupid Chosen really was no help. If a god thought Ryan could reach godhood, then I can definitely make it. If I had that power, the fruit would already be mine with no one daring to chase me.

Thalion furiously complained in his mind while diving downward. He needed something to change, and maybe those fighters were it. Diving through them would slow him down and allow the other elites to catch up—but it was the only way to keep the assassin at bay.

Thalion also gambled on the fact that beasts would be a lower priority, since they carried no loot like armor or weapons, while someone like the assassin was the perfect target. The assassin had speed but no defenses, meaning even a relatively weak fighter could get rich by landing a hit.

The fighters weren’t as densely packed as those around the golden lotus, which allowed Thalion to shoot through the gaps without losing much speed. For the assassin, it wasn’t that easy to follow—everyone was trying to take a chunk out of him, forcing him to murder his way through the crowd.

In the meantime, Thalion barely functioned on instinct. He was moving so fast that he only focused on dodging skills, arrows, and swings while pushing forward without losing more speed than necessary. The air was filled with pained cries and detonating skills. Thalion weaved through attack after attack.

Behind him, a wave of pursuers followed, which ironically made things easier—he wasn’t seen as a priority target by most of the fighters he passed.

After what felt like an endless time, and after getting several feathers scorched, he finally broke free into open air and dove straight into the wide, dark gray ring of clouds.