Earthling in Uncharted Dimensions

"508?"

Lee was astounded to see such a high digit on the outside of his palm. He stood there and inspected the stamp while rubbing it with his other hand. He confirmed that it was a genuine seal of the Cultivator's Guild which depicted a majestic bird with name unknown, spreading its wings to take off from a branch. The number was placed beneath the branch and was larger than the branch and bird. A circle made of scales encapsulated the digit and the symbol into one single circle. There were some vague letters and unintelligible writings on the scales. Lee dismissed them as he thought that they may be something like a motto of the Cultivator's Guild.

His companions also heard his comment and took a moment to scan their numbers too. Mia had the number 509, An had the number 506 and Tera had the number 507 on the outside of their palms. A collective amazement rose up in their hearts, as they couldn't tell how about 505 contestants registered before them that day, as the time was barely reaching 9 in the morning. Tera saw their clueless curiosity, and explained it to them.

"The announcement about the tournament was first declared about 12 days ago. There must be contestants who registered by directly going to the Cultivator's Guild. There is no other way they might have achieved such a high digit by a few hours."

Those confused became content with the explanation, but An had another question.

"Why did you join the tournament? You don't have either of the affinities."

Tera smiled at her and gave a reply.

"I don't think that an affinity is necessary for winning. All you need is courage!"

Her smile did not falter as she gave an amused expression to Gauthama. He took it as his cue to take out her weapons, and raised his both hands and brought them down to touch the back of his neck. As he pulled them out, the ladies and Lee were staring at it like a child staring at the vibrancy of a peacock!

Two black hatchets rose from his back and were presented in front of them. Gauthama extended them and Tera took hold off her familiar twin weapons. As the twin hatchets danced in her arms, Lee, An, Mia and Ruella were speechless to see this little girl they know of, was actually so skilled in handling them.

The hatchets were 36 centimetres long. It's blades were 11 centimetres wide and 4.5 centimetres long at the longest part. The iconic design of less length, where the blade connects the handle was eye-catching. The thin blade of the hatchets were barely 2 millimetres thick. The lightweight of the hatchets were due to the high quality of Pumice Steel used for production. D was freaking out to see a pair of hatchets which have it's handle and blade made out like a single piece from the material known for its difficulty to melt, and the potentially explosive nature when it is in molten state.

There were designs of flowers carved onto its handle, which simultaneously chipped off a small amount of weight. The delicate balance of hatchets Tera exhibited was more than surprising for them. Gauthama knew that they would spectate her skills if left for the whole day, so he was about to break the visual feast, when a guard spoke up from behind-

"The tournament starts at 10. So, go and determine your strength so as to find a suitable opponent."

Guard's words attracted their attention and they realised that they were still standing at the vast and wide path to the sect. The guard pointed to their right and said-

"That stage has an apparatus to determine your strength. Go before the queue for the strength testing grows any longer!"

The queue the guard spoke about was already a few tens of metres long. Quickly thanking the guard, they hurriedly reached near the queue. They saw the 24 Long Sect disciples standing in the queue, and the three those who escorted them standing a few metres apart from them. The Emperor Immortal realm cultivators were talking about something in a soft voice. Them and the disciples turned their heads as they heard the approaching footsteps.

"I will stand here with Ruella. You four go and join the queue."

Gauthama spoke as he decreased his pace. Ruella heard his words and promptly followed his actions. Lee and the ladies quickly joined the queue. They were internally excited for the test, but the despised stares caught Lee's attention. Glancing around, he deduced that his appearance of an adventurer is not liked by the cultivators. Mia and An who were wearing cultivator robes caught the sight of men and women alike. Though wearing an outfit not fond of, Tera was able to not get the detested stares.

The puppet horses they came on were obediently placed in a neat and organised manner. The wooden horses had many complex lines running all over it. At a glance, it may look like a design. But D found out that these puppets are not actually horse shaped, but that shape is one among many shapes these transformable puppets can take. Upon deeper scanning with Map from all sides, D found that these puppets should have another set of hands concealed inside their body and weapons along with it. As D narrated the possible transformations, Lee surfed through his memories and found a mythical being that is supposed to have the shape of a human-horse hybrid, a Centaur!

The cultivators standing in queue wished to go to the ladies and talk to them, but the change in their composure was immediately detected by the peak stage Emperor Immortal cultivator. He released a sliver of his aura and the Long Sect disciples, as well as An and Mia, felt the pressure. Tera, who had no affinity, also felt the immense amount of unfamiliar pressure and her legs almost gave away, but Lee supported her on his shoulders. After giving a few pats and asking whether she is okay, Lee stared at that cultivator who released a very tiny amount of his aura. To Lee's astonishment, he saw those three elders with a visible confusion on their faces.

Ruella was protected by the overpowered existence of Gauthama, as his single breath dissipated the aura into nothingness. Ruella, who had no idea of something of this extent had happened, was having a conversation with the Tubian. Though a man of Qi affinity, Ruella found that Gauthama knows about Mana Mastery more than it seems. The reaction of the Long Sect elders were also noticed by him. He intentionally distracted Ruella from that matter as he made her busy with her own experience narrations.

The elders silently scoffed at Lee's blank reaction to the Qi wave whereas Tera who stood next to him felt it. They judged him as someone who cannot even sense the basic energy of nature, and went back to their normal talks. The disciples decided to chat with the ladies after they impressed them with their power displays on stage.

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9 A.M.

28765 Essence harvested.

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The 24 disciples from the Long Sect tested their strength and got immediately allocated to a suitable opponent. They did not leave immediately, and waited for the four to have their strength tested. Lee could hear their annoying hushed laughs, and he simply ignored it.

Soon after Lee and his party had joined the queue, a lot of contestants came in to join the tournament. The queue went beyond 170 metres. People were anxiously waiting for their chance to get their strength tested. As Lee came closer to the stage, while standing behind An, Mia and Tera, he saw the simple yet effective apparatus.

The apparatus for testing the strength was a very large greyish black stone block that measured 4 metres in length, width and breadth. It's smooth surface was devoid of any scratch marks and cracks, even after all the sword strikes and spear thrusts provided by the Long Sect disciples. Those who used bare-hands felt their fists going numb for over a minute. At the very first glance of it, D recollected some of his memories and spoke to Lee.

[This is a Mài Stone. It is well known for its property to oppose any force it counters and nullifies it. If it ever happens to crack, it will begin to pulsate and the crack will disappear within no time. Mài stones are naturally occurring stones in the depths of the ocean, and the waterfolks guard it with their life. If that thing is here, that means there once lived a hero in this city, who earned the waterfolk's trust so much that they presented a perfect Mài Stone.

Mài Stone nullifies all blunt and mundane force and only concedes to the energies of nature. Attacks imbued with necessary amounts of highly pure Qi and Mana can scratch the surface of the stone, and if more added, the stone can crack up. But the consequences will be greater, as the time it will take to heal itself will go beyond weeks and months.

See that mechanical setup next to the stone?]

The question was raised and Lee glanced to where D pointed. A few mechanical contraptions and a meter display was organised next to the stone, touching its sides.

[Yes, as you have guessed, those are for displaying the strength score. The opponent will be decided when two or more people have similar or near similar values as strength.]

When D finished his explanations, Mia was already standing on the stage, right before the stone. As everyone was given only one shot to exhibit their strength, she mustered all her strength and drew her sword in a flash. The katana grazed the stone and it came back into the scabbard after a second.

"Score 46."

Mia quickly descended the stage and went near her companions. Those who were standing in the queue appreciated Mia's quickness in sword draw. The score from 40 to 55 was considered as an average score. Anything below it was achieved by people with no affinity, and anything above 55 signified the presence of genius among the crowd. If the score goes below 20, that person will have his stamp removed and could only spectate the matches. The money will not be refunded!

Next was Tera. She stepped on the stage as her hands firmly gripped the hatchets. Since she had only got one shot, she decided to make it count. She raised both of her hatchets and brought it down, drawing an X on the stone. The stone was still unyielding, but the spectators saw sparks originating upon the brief moments of contact.

"Score 38."

When Tera came down, Mia embraced her in joy. Gauthama saw this from a distance and felt proud in his sister's achievement. Ruella, on the other hand, was trying her best to evaluate the Mài Stone. Some hooligans did try to approach her, but the presence of the Tubian of Serenity calmed their minds and dismissed such thoughts without a trace!

An ascended the set of steps and almost all men who stood in the queue had a beat skip in their hearts. Her beauty contributed by the system feature 'Alter' made her 28 years old face look like a 24 years old girl. Her physical appearance was not top notch, but was ample for any man who finds content in optimum requirements.

*huff*

An placed her right foot before and tilted her torso, and attained stance. Her legs firmly footed from the other, was slightly bent as her posture was leaned forward. Channeling all her strength to that one strike, she unsheathed her sword and it made a shallow, but visible cut in the stone.

*zing*

The voice of the stone grazed by a longsword which changed its blade's colour to faint pink, was a moment of awe and surprise. An took a complete 360 degree turn to bring the power she exerted to a halt. After the twirl, she unsheathed her sword as she beheld the mark made by her sword. She told herself that her contribution in the strike was less than the sword, and prevented herself from being so full of her.

"Score 57."

*gasp*

A united gasp arose from the crowd before the stage. A genius had been born, many thought in their minds. An slowly descended the steps and walked towards her female companions. A group hug was unveiled as they shared excitement and praises. Some men and women stepped forth to establish a relationship with An. But speak of the devil, that one person whom they all wished not to have here stepped forth with pride!