Celestial Bloodline

The sky was clear above the towering walls of the Gladiator Arena. Every dejected soul who couldn't register for the Arena on time had scattered to hunt for treasures in the Sacred Divine Land.

Among the myriad verdant trees surrounding the arena, a group of familiar faces congregated beneath a specific tree, divvying up the treasures they had obtained from delving into a nearby ancient tomb, all thanks to Kyle's acute sense of smell.

Sinon glanced back at Kyle. The silver-haired man had done the most important work, locating the ancient tomb and treasures. Unlike the others who were busy selecting treasures for themselves, he was leaning against the tree with a calm expression. The winged demi-human moved closer to Kyle with a smile.

"Do you not want anything? We have come across many treasures. Take some before Zron hogs them all-!"

His words were interrupted by a smack on his head. Zron rolled up his sleeves and glared at him with narrowed eyes.

"Who am I, once more?"

Sinon winced and rubbed his head with a somber expression. He lowered his eyes, filled with regret... indeed, he regretted the moment, just like everyone else, when they accepted this greedy man as their master.

"Master..."

A satisfied expression appeared on Zron's face as he got busy again selecting some valuable treasure to enhance his current strength. Kyle chuckled at the scene, his eyes softened as he patted Sinon's shoulder to give him some support.

"Don't worry, they're all spiritual treasures. Not really useful to me right now. You all can divide them. Plus, many such treasures are just gathering dust in my mind space."

Kyle was telling it like it is. When he and Bia set out to explore the Sacred Divine Land on their own, they stumbled upon a trove of treasures, practically emptying out every tomb they stumbled upon. So, he wasn't short on treasures by any means.

His smile faded as he raised his hand to flick away the tiny winged creature entirely made of light attempting to sneak up on him from behind.

Sinon didn't even flinch at this sight. It's been over three months since they left the Gladiator Arena, and witnessing mystical spirits hovering around Kyle and seeing him casually shoo them away had become somewhat routine for all of them... or to be precise, they were sort of numb after the initial shock they experienced.

Kyle brushed his hand, which had come into contact with the mystical spirit, against his clothes and glanced at Sinon. He casually reached out to pluck a distinct, dark green patch of grass growing nearby, different from the others, and handed it to the man.

"I'm not sure what this is, but it's giving off a positive scent. You should ask Alec or Susan as they are more knowledgeable. I'm confident it's something valuable as well."

Sinon nodded and swiftly rejoined the others. It seemed his worry about Kyle not acquiring any treasures was baseless. The man could easily come across something valuable by simply leaning against a tree. Who was he to fret about such a formidable individual?

After dividing the treasures, everyone agreed to grab a bite. Initially, they weren't big on eating since each member of the group possessed enough strength to go without food for months, thanks to the divine energy within them. But Bia's habit to eat at least two substantial meals daily, even when not feeling hungry, led the group to join her in eating. Eventually, it turned into a shared habit among them all.

Nine, Carcel, Sinon, and Regius wasted no time and swiftly went to hunt a few beasts nearby. At the same time, the three girls with Alec began to light a fire and gather the essentials for preparing the meal. The three old men were also occupied; they went to find some good fruits nearby.

Only Kyle, Bia, and Nox lay peacefully under the green tree without a care. It wasn't that they were unwilling to help; it was simply because after trying Kyle's cooking, he was kindly told to never cook again.

Also, due to the mystical spirits always surrounding him, all the beasts would flee at the mere sight of his shadow. Eventually, they requested Kyle to gather other edible items like regular fruits or anything else edible, but the silver-haired man returned after a full day with fruits brimming with divine and spiritual energy. Eating such divine and spiritual fruits daily wasn't good for everyone's body, so he was also dissuaded from that task.

As for Bia and Nox, the pair just simply stayed with Kyle because they only knew how to eat and nothing more.

Kyle's nose twitched as a delicious aroma wafted in the air, and without even looking, he was certain it was Yue's turn to cook today. However, before he could join the others after Bia and Nox, his head snapped toward the sky. His eyes narrowed at the dark clouds gathering above.

"Oh... it seems the lost treasure tomb is about to open. That means the Gladiator Arena will be over soon."

A mischievous gleam flickered in his eyes as he checked out the towering walls of the Gladiator Arena. After they finished their meal, Kyle told everyone to get ready to enter the Lost Treasure Tomb.

They weren't surprised at his words since they could also see the event unfolding in the sky. They were just curious about how they would enter the Gladiator Arena. Nine rubbed his hands with an evil smirk.

"I can't wait to see the faces of those top participants who have been grinding day and night in the arena just to secure a spot to enter the Lost Treasure Tomb when we casually stroll into that very Tomb!"

Jian laughed in agreement.

"It's going to be so entertaining, haha!"

The pair, along with everyone else, exchanged glances with Kyle before Regius couldn't contain himself any longer.

"But seriously, let us in on the plan. Just spill it; we'll figure it out eventually anyway."

Kyle's expression turned serious as he cleared his throat.

"It's something I can't reveal at the moment. Otherwise, it might jeopardize the plan."

Bia, who knew him inside out, swiftly moved to his shoulder and asked him with a skeptical expression.

-'Hey... why do I get the feeling that you don't have a solid plan in mind right now? Don't you dare tell me you just want to go with the flow?'

Her doubts were confirmed when Kyle reached out to grab her beak to silence her so she wouldn't tell anyone else.

'No way! Just what kind of person do you think I am, huh?'

-'....'

Just like that, a phoenix, trying to tell everyone around Kyle to prepare for another impending doom, was silenced by the man himself before she could utter a sound.