CHAPTER 392: SELECTING PEOPLE (PART-2)

To find someone wielding such a law here?

Interesting. Very interesting.

Her name was quickly known by everyone, and they etched her name in their mind.

Her name was quickly known by everyone, spoken in hushed tones and etched deep into memory.

"Iris Veyla."

A name that carried elegance, but behind it was a storm.

After the shock, many others also showed their strength by making the war drum reverberate five times or more.

As it was the last day, many strong warriors from all over the northern continent came in great numbers... In fact, it was the busiest day, and all forces were gathered today calmly watching geniuses from all over the continent.

Apollo observed them all with a calm, discerning gaze.

Silently, he evaluated the talents on display, separating the worthy from the mediocre. By the time the crowd began to thin, he had already selected five more individuals he deemed worthy of joining his organisation.

All five had struck the War God Drum at least six times.

Two of them—like Iris—had managed seven thunderclaps, sending fresh waves of shock through the crowd. The number of dark horses emerging today had far exceeded everyone’s expectations.

Apollo’s lips curled slightly.

This will be interesting.

Apollo’s gaze moved calmly through the crowd. One by one, he marked those who stood out—not merely for their raw strength, but for their composure, potential, and aura. He wasn’t seeking pawns—he sought leaders, specialists, and the kind of talent that could shake the world under the right guidance.

Aside from Iris Veyla, he picked five more.

’Kael Draven’

A young man clad in ragged hunter’s garb, with twin curved daggers at his waist. He struck the War God Drum six times without so much as a sound escaping his lips. His movements were subtle, but Apollo noticed something rare.

He wielded the law of speed and silence, a mysterious rule that allowed him to erase sound and suppress presence.

"A perfect assassin," Apollo thought. "But smarter than he looks."

’Sara.’

A tall, willowy woman draped in flowing green and black robes. When she struck the drum, green light burst around her hand—and the drum boomed six times. She was a master of toxic arts and cultivated the Law of Corrosion, allowing her to melt divine metal, rot defences, and poison even divine energy.

’Brynn Stonefist.’

A hulking man with reddish-bronze skin and iron gauntlets. He struck the War God Drum seven times, each blow louder than the last.

He was born of a minor noble house, rejected for his "unclean" bloodline—yet the strength in his veins was undeniable.

Brynn seemed to have understood the Law of Gravity, able to increase the weight and force behind his attacks exponentially. In battle, his fists crushed mountains and shattered half-gods bodies like dust.

’Ceylin Duskwhisper.’

A slender youth with pale skin and silvery-blue hair that shimmered like starlight. His drum test produced six echoing thunderclaps, but his true power was illusion. He practiced a rare mental cultivation path and grasped the Law of Dreams, which allowed him to trap enemies in false realities or confuse their senses.

Riven Arkell.

A bald young man wearing tattered robes stained with blood. His face bore deep scars, but his eyes were calm and serene. He bowed to the drum, muttered a prayer, and then struck—seven times. His strength wasn’t flashy; it was rooted in a strange mix of martial purity and spiritual wrath.

He had mastered the Law of Blood Purity, a path that strengthened the body through pain, sacrifice, and battle. With every wound he took, he grew stronger, faster... deadlier.

With six potential candidates now marked—Iris Veyla, Kael, Sara, Brynn, Ceylin, and Riven—Apollo was more than satisfied.

"This is a good start for his organisation." He just needed to wait for the end of the worshipping ceremony, and then he would contact them. From what he had seen, they seemed good enough, but he still needed to observe, and this worshipping ceremony was just right.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, the city began to quiet. Word spread quickly:

Tomorrow, the worshipping ceremony would begin.

Rumours flooded every corner of the border city.

More than a thousand challengers had passed the War God Drum trial. Only one would be granted the chance to undergo the baptism of the Titanbone Clan’s Ancestor—a rite said to awaken bloodlines, empower bodies, or even open the path to ancient inheritances buried deep within the clan’s sacred grounds.

The night passed in silence.

The following morning arrived with a chilling breeze and a sky painted in ash-grey clouds.

BOOM!

A thunderous roar shook the heavens.

Without warning, the sky above the Titanbone Clan turned dark—clouds spiralling inwards as if the world itself had been pulled into silence. The oppressive pressure pressed down on everyone in the city, making it hard to breathe.

Then, from the depths of the Titanbone Clan’s ancestral lands, something began to rise.

Dozens of colossal statues—each one depicting an ancient Titan God—emerged from the earth like giants awakening from a slumber that had lasted millennia. Towering beyond comprehension, their forms were carved from black stone veined with glowing crimson lines, as though blood still pulsed within them.

Each statue exuded a terrifying aura—a mixture of rage, power, and divine will.

A wave of instinctual fear swept through the crowd.

Even experienced veteran warriors and killers who had seen many things fell silent. Some dropped to one knee without realising it. The sheer presence of these statues wasn’t just symbolic—it was spiritual, a pressure that tested the soul itself.

Apollo’s gaze lifted.

He didn’t flinch.

Instead, his blue eyes gleamed with interest.

"So this is the legacy of the Titan Gods..." he murmured. "Interesting. Let’s see what you’re truly hiding."

He can tell these statues definitely have mystical power, but what caught his eye was that the source of their power seemed to be beneath the ancestral land. He can see the mysterious power connecting all those ancient Titan statues.

But he didn’t show any expression and, like a normal spectator, watched all of this.

All the thousand geniuses who passed the war drum test and the few dozen geniuses from the Titanbone clan all gathered outside the ancestral land.

From a distance everyone was looking at those titan statues and was feeling awe at their power.

The air trembled. The earth rumbled. And every heart present knew—

The ceremony was about to begin.

And with that, an elder from the Titanbone appeared in front of the thousand geniuses, releasing an overwhelming aura of the Void God realm.

The elder’s eyes swept across the crowd—ancient, stern, and indifferent.

Then, he spoke. His voice was not loud, but it resonated, vibrating through the bones and minds of everyone present.

"You stand before the sacred grounds of the Titanbone Clan’s ancestors."

"You have proven yourselves by striking the War God Drum, but that was only the threshold. From this moment forward, you walk the path of trial, of sacrifice... and of legacy."