CHAPTER 749: SPIRE ASCENSION (XIX)

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Humans. Ten of them in a curve occupying Cedric’s vision.

They are who greeted him once he stepped out to the other side of the portal leading to the 90th floor.

It wasn’t just Cedric who’s speechless right now. The audience, the hosts, hell, even the councillors themselves were speechless too.

Clearly, nobody was expecting the spire to simulate humans for this ascension trial too. They were expecting some other creatures, maybe something large and deadly, and something that would truly threaten Cedric’s existence. Definitely not humans.

The humans who stood opposite to him were all wearing masks. They were also geared up in high-quality armor and weapons. Power radiated off them in waves, ones that could easily intimidate others and make them hesitate to approach them.

They didn’t speak. They just stood there stoically and stared at Cedric as if they were waiting for something.

"Uh...hi? Do you guys talk or what?"

Shing!!!

Instead of words, what he got as a reply was their act of drawing out their weapons. Each one gleamed with a dangerous sheen, making nobody underestimate the sharpness and quality of their steel.

"Really? Nobody? I brought snacks and...tea? Can’t we all just sit down and talk for a bit before we start killing each other?"

Boom!

A flash of sanguine light flew towards him, one that Cedric effortlessly parried to the side.

"Welp, I guess not, then. Oh, well. An attempt was made, at least."

The fight began just like that, much to everybody’s amusement.

They certainly appreciated Cedric’s attempt at diplomacy. It displayed that he wasn’t a complete nut job who would just start killing everybody on sight just because he was told to do so.

It’s just too bad that the other party wasn’t interested in small talk. Well, it’s either they’re not interested or they simply can’t. Maybe it’s the latter; these humans were simulations, after all.

Due to the shock of many people seeing Cedric fighting humans on this floor, the majority of them missed the other differences compared to the previous floors. The most obvious one being the battlefield itself.

Unlike the previous floors, the current battlefield was way better. They’re in a large, bright, and sunny world. Not a trace of desolation, destruction, or corruption in sight. It’s a beautiful world that Cedric was almost unwilling to desecrate by fighting these silent humans.

The other obvious thing is that Cedric was fighting five men and five women. It’s a little difficult to tell their genders underneath all the layers of armor they had on themselves, but a close observation would reveal this.

Cedric also noticed something that others couldn’t see for now. Through his blessed eyes, he could see what’s under the masks of his opponents. There, he discovered that the upper half of their faces was blurred.

They don’t have a nose, eyebrows, eyelids, or eyelashes; except for their eyes, the rest of the upper half of their faces is shaded in a dark tint. It’s like the simulation failed to load the rest of their facial features, which shouldn’t be possible, so it could only be on purpose.

Cedric couldn’t just see what’s beneath their masks; his eyes were far more intrusive than that, especially against his enemies.

He could see through their appearance, see through their bodies, see how active their blood flow was, how fast their heart beats, how much they blink, and the very moment they decide to commit to an action, down to every small twitch of their muscles. Cedric sees through everything.

It’s for this reason why Cedric always found it easier to fight against his own kin, because his eyes tell him everything and he’s the most familiar withhuman biology.

It is also for this reason why he’s very certain that his enemies right now are truly humans. Pure humans of the Primitive Universe, as far as he knew. But they’re also simulations of the spire.

Also, they’re Universe Masters...

Clang! Clang! Boom!

One against ten. One Immortal Warrior (debatable) human against ten Universe Master humans.

Any sane mind would instantly say that this was an overkill. The latter group would definitely win against their sole weak enemy.

But this isn’t any regular individual they’re facing. Cedric was far more than what the normal people could handle.

That said, it’s not a lie to say this was indeed a little too much. His enemies were at a whole major realm above his own life evolution level. This was indeed a very difficult challenge to overcome.

Nevertheless, Cedric can’t retreat. He couldn’t even if he wanted to. Neither his current enemies nor the spire itself will allow him to do so. All he could do was to fight back.

It’s either him or them. And he resolutely believes that it should be them who die, not him.

The fight was explosive, to say the least. It’s a pity for the once beautiful battlefield they’re on since it’s now reduced to mere rubble. Manifestations of Great Laws appeared everywhere, laying waste to this world wantonly.

His enemies weren’t giving him any time to rest. They resolutely went after him, closing all of his possible retreats, cornering him like a beast that needed to be caged.

Alas, they’re targeting an exceptionally talented and extremely cunning beast. Cedric wouldn’t have survived through hordes of abominations on the previous floor if ten humans were enough to push him to a corner.

Boom!

Before his enemies even realized, they had already been played. The flying swords that they’ve scattered around and didn’t think much of as a threat turned around and bit them in the ass by becoming a grand sword formation that caught every single one of them like they’re some buzzing flies.

A flood of sharp sword intent sliced through them, severing their influence on the world, leaving them weak and vulnerable.

They tried their best to escape, employing all sorts of methods to escape the formation, but nothing they did was useful. They remained restrained and immobilized under the radiant flourish of the sword formation.

Cedric looked disappointed, actually. Because that was too easy. They couldn’t even make him sweat. They were too predictable, straightforward, and honest with their intent, so much so that it was effortless for him to predict what they’re going to do next.

And although they were Universe Masters, they couldn’t escape from the formation he trapped them in, which was really disappointing.

Because he could see every minute change in their bodies in real time, Cedric knew that they weren’t just acting; they’ve truly been suppressed by the formation, there’s no doubt about that.

And so, he stopped by one. He flipped the target over and leaned down to pry off the mask he was wearing, revealing the sight he saw underneath to the audience.

"So? Is anybody interested in talking now?"

"..."

Sigh...

It seems that the answer was no. And probably not because they don’t want to, but because they simply can’t. It’s a pity, though; Cedric truly wanted to know more about the spire through them.

Alas, he should’ve expected that it wouldn’t be this easy. These humans were nothing more than simulations of the spire. If it wanted to be understood, then it would’ve done something, or at least left some clues, by now.

Clearly, it has no interest in being known or understood by anybody, and Cedric just has to respect that.

With every single one of them pinned down, Cedric ended the fight quickly and cleanly. Since he couldn’t extract any information from them, there’s no use in keeping them alive or prolonging their agony.

The fight was slightly disappointing to the audience, but Cedric couldn’t bring himself to care. Instead, he just continued moving on as he usually does, arriving at the 91st floor already, not even bothering to rest in between.

Upon getting there, he was once again greeted by a bright and sunny world and a group of humans he needed to defeat. This time, he must face 20 of them, and every single one is a Universe Master.

"It would’ve been so nice to have you guys as my bodyguards," Cedric lamented at the wasted potential while drawing out his swords.

The Heavenly Star Chaos Realm held the largest population of humans, but even with how many of them there were, Universe Masters were pretty rare. It takes a very long time to produce more, and the processes aren’t always linear.

It would’ve been really nice if these people were real and if he could bring them out of the spire. They just need to serve as his bodyguard until he becomes strong enough to have a solid foothold on this chaos realm; then, he’d return their freedom to them.

Cedric knew that he had gotten a lot of attention, and things won’t be peaceful for him after this tournament, so some bodyguards would’ve been nice.

Alas, these people aren’t real.

With that in mind, Cedric attacked without any hesitation anymore. Since none of them were interested in small talk and he couldn’t bring them out, then they’re no different from training dummies.

"What’s even the point of all this?"

At the very least, this was the one thing that Cedric truly wanted to know.