As cup after cup of fine wine went down, Pash grew more talkative. Rhodes, by contrast, listened more and spoke less. He drank quite a bit, yet seemed as though he had drunk nothing at all.
Pash, that sounds so familiar. Where have I seen that name before? Rhodes searched his memories carefully, then raised his head for another couple of looks. Blood-red hair, blood-red robes-that inexplicable sense of familiarity.
??? Damn, the Blood Peak Sovereign, Pash? Could it really be such a coincidence? He finally remembered. This Sovereign had appeared several times in the original novel and was fairly friendly toward Linley's side. He also had a good relationship with Bebe. He was something of a kindly old soul among Sovereigns, and a Destruction Element Sovereign who followed the Sovereign of Destruction.
At that thought, Rhodes very much wanted to spar with this young man named Pash and see whether he was a Destruction Element Midgod. Surely it could not be that much of a coincidence-the first person he met in the boundless Star Mist Sea turning out to be a future Sovereign?
After letting his mind wander for a while, Rhodes looked at the nearly empty wine jar and said to Pash, "We've only been drinking yours. Try some of my fine wine too. Though I don't know whether you can handle it."
Pash paused, thinking, Whether I can handle it? Is his wine some kind of gut-piercing poison?
Whatever he thought, Pash said to Rhodes, "Hurry and bring it out. Let's taste it together."
His tone seemed to urge Rhodes to bring it out quickly.
Seeing this, Rhodes did not intend to say much more. With a wave of his hand, two jars of wine appeared on the stone table. The moment the wine appeared, lightning could be seen manifesting out of thin air around the jars. Though it held little power, it was genuine thunder and lightning.
Pash widened his eyes and muttered to himself, "The world is vast, and truly nothing is too strange to exist. Even thunder and lightning like this can become fine wine. Wonderful, wonderful. We must share a cup!"
Watching Pash, who was still muttering to himself, Rhodes reached out, picked up a jar, and poured the wine into his cup. Then he downed it in one gulp. "This is the stuff. What a kick!!!"
Across from him, Pash also filled his own cup and drained it in one gulp, repeatedly praising the wine.
At last, when the wine in his hand ran out, Pash composed himself and looked solemnly at Rhodes.
"Earlier, I was planning to suggest a spar after sharing a cup with you. After all, the Infernal Realm is so vast, and it isn't easy to come across another Midgod. Sparring and exchanging insights can help us comprehend the laws faster too. What do you think?" Having said his piece, Pash looked at Rhodes.
Rhodes had been agonizing over how to propose sparring with Pash. After all, Pash had said earlier that he only wanted to share a cup with him. So he had intended to drink first and make his request afterward.
It felt intensely familiar, like when Rhodes had worked in sales and asked others for favors: give gifts first, then bring up the matter.
Once Pash finished speaking, Rhodes agreed without a second thought, and a smile appeared on Pash's face.
"I knew you'd agree, brother. I cultivate the Laws of Destruction, and I'm a Midgod. Why don't we spar right now?" Watching Pash grow increasingly excited, Rhodes had previously thought him a civilized fellow, only to discover that he was a battle maniac too.
Thinking about it, that made sense. How many people who cultivated the Laws of Destruction could succeed through secluded cultivation alone? Hadn't Watrod made a name for himself even earlier than Rhodes? What earned a great reputation? Fists.
Thinking no further, Rhodes immediately stood up. Without another word, he flew into the air, summoned the Tribulation-Breaking Divine Sword, and hovered there, waiting for Pash.
Pash also rose straight into the air. By the time he reached Rhodes's height, he already held a blood-colored, long-saber-shaped divine artifact in his hand.
The atmosphere between the two grew increasingly heavy. Two invisible auras clashed ceaselessly, and Rhodes, who was on the verge of fusing three Profound Mysteries of the elemental Laws, actually held no advantage in aura.
For the first time in nearly a thousand years, Rhodes had encountered a Sovereign who appeared in the original novel, yet he could not gain the slightest advantage in this clash of auras.
Moreover, the original novel had never said this man was a Paragon, only a lesser Sovereign. Sure enough, not one of those who could seize a Sovereign Spark in the future struggle among Sovereigns was a simple figure.
At that thought, Rhodes no longer dared underestimate him in the slightest. He planned to see how the fight would go without using his Innate Divine Ability first. If he could not even gain the upper hand in a spar with Pash, he did not intend to seek out the Amethyst Mountains.
After all, two intermediate Sovereigns would emerge from the Amethyst Mountains in the future. Rhodes thought privately, Could those two have used that Innate Divine Ability that controls people when fighting over the Sovereign Sparks, and only then seized them?
As for any claim that these people had obtained their Sovereign Sparks through luck, Rhodes did not believe it one bit. Could a treasure of heaven and earth appear without any unusual phenomena? Without accurate information, who would dare casually refine a Divine Spark? A Sovereign Spark was a Divine Spark too. No deity with even a shred of ambition would refine a Divine Spark.
Thus, Rhodes was certain that obtaining a Divine Spark depended not on luck, but on strength. All that talk of luck was bullshit. The original novel said that very few Sovereigns were Paragons. Why were there so few? Wasn't it because they cultivated and comprehended too quickly, reaching Highgod at tremendous speed? Comprehending and fusing as a Highgod was more than a hundred times harder than comprehending as a Midgod.
Why cultivate so quickly? Fuck, the world had only just begun. Cultivate a little slower, and you might be killed or enslaved. And people still asked why they cultivated so quickly? It was not just the Infernal Realm. Even the present Celestial Realm and Netherworld saw endless fighting. Only the Life Godrealm was somewhat better, but even with the original novel stating that the Sovereign of Life disliked conflict, no one could claim that the Life Godrealm was peaceful and tranquil.
Who would not want to comprehend all the Profound Mysteries of the Laws as quickly as possible? Perhaps some had learned by chance that the Profound Mysteries could be fused, but they would not publicize it widely. They would only cultivate quietly, then astonish the world.
Though many thoughts passed through Rhodes's mind, only an instant actually elapsed. Fortunately, this was not a life-and-death struggle, where the truth would be revealed in a flash.
Having sensed no killing intent from Pash, Rhodes naturally would not open with a killing blow. Moreover, seeing that Pash matched the information in practically every respect, he reckoned this man might really be the future "Blood Peak Sovereign-Pash!"
Whoosh! After countless thoughts flashed through his mind, Rhodes thought no further. He swept his divine sword up to point straight at Pash. As though it were a signal, Pash swung his saber and attacked, and Rhodes raised his hand to block Pash's heavy, forceful strike.
In the blink of an eye, they clashed an unknown number of times. Only after collision upon collision did they separate, their auras rising again. It seemed neither had gained much advantage in their head-on exchanges. Now it would come down to the depth of their comprehension of the Profound Mysteries of the Laws.
Dense streams of Destruction Divine Power gathered on the battle saber, and a black aura that seemed capable of annihilating everything appeared upon its blade.
"Truly worthy of the Laws of Destruction, the strongest in attack. But the attacks of my Laws of Lightning aren't weak either!" Rhodes felt the terrifying aura emanating from Pash.
Streaks of thunder and lightning gathered on the Tribulation-Breaking Divine Sword. As mentioned before, Rhodes had developed two moves in total: one was a finishing move that trapped and killed over a wide area, while the other was a powerful single-target finishing move. Soul Attacks and physical attacks were all fused into the Tribulation-Breaking Divine Sword. Once unleashed, it would astonish.
Sensing Rhodes's aura, the light in Pash's eyes grew even brighter. Their earlier exchanges had already told him that this man was difficult to deal with and quite strong. He had not expected him to actually be his equal. Since this was a spar, Pash had never intended to use his full strength, and he could tell that his opponent was doing the same.
Both controlled the energy in their hands. At this point, the contest was not about the amount of energy, but about their comprehension of the laws of their two elements.
Pash, who had always cultivated alone, had sparred with other Midgods, but not one had been a close match for him. Now that he had finally met an evenly matched opponent, how could he not be excited?
It took longer to tell than to happen. Saber and sword collided head-on. Black Destruction Divine Power surged from the saber onto the sword with the momentum to destroy everything. Naturally unwilling to show weakness, the sword's thunderous aura also attacked the saber. Amid it, there seemed to be an illusory longsword phantom that also traveled through the sword to attack Pash.
PS: First chapter~~~
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