As intentionally made some noise and revealed his presence. The woman that apanied Artemia was strong enough to sense him even without actively attempting to, so the fact that she didn''t acknowledge his presence until he revealed it was a move that garnered his respect.


    "You…As?!"


    Artemia eximed as she realized that he was already present.


    "Hurry up and run before they catch you! You really don''t want to go to my n, I promise!" she yelled before anyone could say anything.


    As jumped off of the tree branch and apanied them on the ground. Giving a nod to the other woman as a polite greeting, he turned his attention to Artemia curiously.


    "Why is that? I do not have any problems with your people, do I?"


    "That doesn''t matter. Trust me, if you don''t want to go through hell, then run right now. If you leave, I promise they won''t follow you."


    As shook his head with a smile.


    ''She is beingpletely serious, but her concern has nothing to do with my safety. Instead, is she fearing something that she had to experience there?''


    It was aedic kind of reaction that clearly wasn''t entirely serious in nature despite her tone. Her reaction made As less worried, in fact, since he was very familiar with that expression.


    ''She has been going through hell training.''


    That was the look of someone who was forced to train without doing anything else. Artemia wanted to escape it, but with her insinuation that As would also have to undergo it if he followed them…


    ''...is that not better for me?''


    Hell training was always his goal. Divine Sanctuary was bound to have facilities that he could not easily gain ess to otherwise, so its headquarters was an ideal location if he could find a way to stay there.


    "Putting aside what my talkative niece is saying, since you have revealed yourself, you have already decided to follow us, yes?" the woman beside Artemia said, breaking into their conversation.


    "Mm. I do not quite understand what your purpose is, but my intuition tells me that it is of no harm to me. I am curious about what the true strength of a Great Society looks like as well."


    Artemia''s aunt smiled.


    "Good. Then, let us leave right away."


    Artemia looked between them with a panicked expression on her face. She didn''t like how fast their conversation was progressing at all.


    "Wait, As, don''t you want to think it over a little? Maybe it would be a better idea for me to show you around Vanatos for a few days or weeks or months before I have to… I mean you have to go to the n?"


    Her rants went ignored, much to her dismay. Unfortunately for her, As wasn''t going to save her from whatever training she had to do.


    ''It will benefit you in the future, so bear with it.''


    With that thought in mind, he returned his focus entirely to the woman who introduced herself as Ade Tatsuya.


    "I have sent a request. We should be teleported to the pce soon," she said as she put away the device in her hand.


    "Unfortunately, you will not be able to see the entirety of what Divine Sanctuary has, but you will be more than satisfied with the majesty of the Azure Dragon n."


    "Azure Dragon n?" As echoed in surprise.


    "You didn''t know?" Artemia interjected after having epted her fate.


    "I''m a dragon, and so is Auntie. I thought it wasmon knowledge, really."


    How could it bemon knowledge? It was nothing of the sort!


    Back when As was alive, dragons were rare beings who could only be seen by those with immense luck. Now, was Artemia telling him that not only she and her aunt were dragons, but also the entire rest of their n?!


    "What exactly is…Divine Sanctuary?" He asked as the realization dawned upon him.


    A ring of light appeared underneath the three people, slowly turning into a runic circle that confirmed their connection to their chosen destination.


    As they were picked up and taken to a different ce, thest words Ade said stuck in As'' mind.


    "Divine Sanctuary is exactly as it sounds. It is a Sanctuary for Divine Beasts, for those beasts of all lineages who wish to have a home. Led by our Azure Dragon n, the Vermillion Bird n, the White Tiger n, and the ck Tortoise n, it is a ce carved into the tower for people like us to go."


    That kind of description put a grand image in As'' mind that was further exemplified by the sight captured by his eyes when the teleportation finished.


    ''Wow…''


    It was breathtaking, really. As had seen many grand monuments in his past, but certainly nothing of this size.


    There was a massive rectangrke leading to a pce so unbelievablyrge that it was almost too much. Surrounding it was a city that spanned as far as the eye could see, popted by the people who served under those who lived in the pce.


    "Don''t be too stunned by what you see here. The inside is actually pretty shabby."


    Artemia''s words went in one ear and out the other. The moment As saw the pce, allments from her became words of a rich woman. Her opinions on the pce were irrelevant.


    "Still, she is not entirely wrong. This exterior is only for others to admire. Where we are going can be considered far more…homey," Ade said wryly.


    She and Artemia led As across theke and into the pce, exining along the way the things he needed to know.


    The Tatsuya n, otherwise known as the Azure Dragon n, was immensely respected in the world. As never knew about it because their origins were in the Immortal Realm, beyond where he''d ever been in the past.


    There were many interesting things about the n. For instance, despite having arge influence, the actual member count of the pure-blooded Azure Dragon n was quite low, still under a hundred.


    It was because all of them had immense strength and it was because the other Azure Dragon ns were so loyal that they held so much influence.


    And, most importantly of all, their leader was someone with a reputation that spanned the entire tower, striking fear into the hearts of all.


    "In case you weren''t aware, the Tower has a system to award those who make great aplishments. The height of that system is the status of the 9 Heavenly Kings. Each and every one of them can stand above the rest of the Tower''s Ascenders and is considered most likely to eventually find a way to the peak. At the very top of that list, the first of the 9 Heavenly Kings…"


    "...the Cmity Dragon, ric Tatsuya. That is who we are going to meet."


    As nearly froze in ce.


    The 9 Heavenly Kings. He had heard of the title, but that was the extent of it. To know that they were the stars above all other cultivators in the Tower was apletely different thing.


    The man who was even stronger than the other 8 Heavenly Kings, who was presumably also Artemia''s father…


    ''...I am beginning to understand why she told me to run.''